January 15, 2019
Council Approves Licensed Retail Cannabis Stores
in South Bruce Peninsula
Council Kills Sauble Sewer Proposal
A proposal to build a sewer system at Sauble Beach is dead.
In a unanimous decision Tuesday, South Bruce Peninsula council decided it will not continue with the project and will not move forward on an environmental study report recommendation.
| Owen Sound Sun Times Article "Sauble sewer proposal killed" | |
| Final Report to Council | Financial Implications |
Sewage Treatment at Sauble Beach
Re-evaluated
As a result of Ministry of the Environment opinions, The Town of South Bruce Peninsula has chosen to reopen the Environmental Assessment process.
Read More....
On January 11, 2011, the Town of South Bruce Peninsula Council made a decision to put the project on hold and seek more information.
Wasted Tax Dollars
Since 2002, costs for this project, including the controversial $450,000 purchase of 76 acres for the proposed sewage plant site on the Sauble River, have gone over $1,000,000. Some older costs were transferred to ratepayers. Read More...
From January 1, 2008 to March 31, 2011 the Sauble Beach Sewage System has cost taxpayers an estimated $1,199,353.08, not including full-time salary and fringe benefit allocations, and the costs continue to accrue. Cost Details...
Ecosystem
Sauble residents have rejected the idea of allowing discharge of any sort from a sewage treatment plant to flow into the Sauble River. There will never be any discharge to the river for the following reasons:
- A third or even half of the river volume could be sewage plant effluent
- There will always be pressure to grow the system larger once started
- The river is one of the best salmon and trout spawning streams in Ontario
The final proposal submitted by Genivar includes plans to discharge phosphate rich effluent, which has secondary treatment only, into the waters offshore of Sauble Beach. This is not a workable solution since it would double the phosphate contribution already received in the same area from Sauble River discharge. The placing of the outfall pipe possibly in bedrock below the lakebed makes this project economically unsound and the outfall a potential ecosystem disaster that could never be corrected once a system was in place.
Since this water and sewer study was started in 1995 no engineering firm has ever found a workable and acceptable way to discharge treated effluent gathered from all of Sauble Beach that did not compromise the ecosystem in some way.
The Sauble River is an asset to the community. Nutrients, surfactants, pharmaceuticals, and E. coli, should not be discharged into these waters, our goal should always be to improve the water quality. Read More...
Hookup Plus Servicing Costs
Combined together these could reach $20,000 - $40,000 per residential property due to numerous design changes and expansion of the system. There will also be a significant yearly fee for all users. Forced hookups have angered many and some businesses have asked to be given deferrals. Read More...
Lifestyle Changes
Cuesta Planning Consultants have been retained by the Town of South Bruce Peninsula to develop a "Growth Strategy" for Sauble Beach. The Draft Plan proposes high density urban style development requiring water and sewer servicing. Sauble Beach has a distinct character and should grow at a slow and measured pace.
Cuesta and the Town held a public meeting on Saturday, July 17th, 2010 to discuss the draft plan.
After holding the public meeting, the draft proposal for the Cuesta plan remains under review. As the 2011 year gets underway Council has responded to public opinion and called for a review of the unpopular Genivar inspired plan to provide sewage treatment for all of Sauble Beach. Cuesta and Genivar appear to have a shared goal to plan for intensive growth and provision of services. Read More...
Alternatives
The Environmental Assessment states that 90% of the E.coli found at the beach comes from the Sauble River (read more about sources of E. coli on the Beach). It is not septic systems that are a danger to the beach. There is no systemic failure of the water table and the beach is not in any danger from widely distributed, properly functioning, septic systems. Some septic systems in the Sauble Beach Development Control Area (DCA) are on inadequate lot sizes with insufficient clearance distances between septic tank tile beds and nearby water sources. Modern, environmentally friendly solutions exist for isolated septic system problems. If a sewage system must be built, there are other methods of effluent disposal besides discharging into the Sauble River. Read More...