Craig and Pat Nairn are upset with a plan to use this sandpit located near Desert Park racetrack to dump excess effluent from the town’s lagoons, which are close to capacity. Craig Nairn told members of Osoyoos town council on Monday that neighbours are worried about bad odours and mosquitoes, as well as the huge amounts of effluent that will be dumped at the site if the construction tender is awarded later this week. Photo by Keith Lacey.
Following a presentation by angry neighbours of the Dividend Ridge subdivision relating to a proposal to dump excess effluent from the town’s lagoons into a large sand pit located near the Desert Park racetrack facility, Town of Osoyoos council wants numerous questions answered before awarding the tender contract and allowing the project to move ahead.
Tenders to expand the sand pit area north of Desert Park and install new piping to dump effluent in the sand pit are scheduled to close this week (October 4).
Following a presentation by Dividend Ridge resident Craig Nairn on Monday, members of council said they wanted to discuss the issue over the proposed site during an in-camera session of council and would be asking Terry Underwood, the town’s engineering consultant from True Engineering, to appear before members of council on Oct. 15 to answer numerous questions posed by Nairn and his neighbours in the Dividend Ridge subdivision.
Last month, Ron Doucette, the town’s director of operational services, urged members of council to support a staff plan to dump excess effluent from the town’s lagoons to the sandpit located near Desert Park at a cost of roughly $150,000.
Because the town’s lagoon sewage treatment system was near capacity, Doucette said the “emergency situation” had to be dealt with quickly, so staff recommended spending $150,000 designated to install solar ray panels to provide power capacity at the local landfill should be directed towards this project.
During his presentation Monday, Nairn said he and several neighbours believe the selected site to dump the excess effluent is a poor one and should be reconsidered.
None of the neigbours who live in homes on the town’s West Bench near the Osoyoos Golf and Country Club that he has spoken to were consulted about this decision to divert significant amounts of effluent and this is unacceptable, said Nairn.
“We don’t know why this location was chosen in the first place,” said Nairn.
Town staff have confirmed the amount of effluent that would be shipped to this proposed site is 1,000 cubic metres per day for 165 days, which is “the size of 28 swimming pools that are 20 feet in diameter and four feet deep every single day … and all of it in an area less than two acres.”
The area will become a breeding ground for mosquitoes due to large amounts of stagnant water and will emit a horrendous stench when the wind is blowing, he said.
Numerous homeowners in the subdivision already complain about bad odours emanating from the current sewage lagoons when the wind is blowing south and the problem will become much worse if large amounts of effluent are dumped near Desert Park, he said.
Neighbours are also worried allowing this site to proceed could result in the town agreeing to disperse even more effluent in this area in the future, said Nairn.
Neighbours believe the best solution is to disperse excess effluent on fields near the Osoyoos Airport, on the indoor portion of the racetrack at Desert Park and in large septic bags the town has been using to store spray effluent near Osoyoos Secondary School, said Nairn.
“These storage bags will work if done properly,” he said.
The sandpit proposal might work if there were minimal amounts of excess effluent being pumped there, but that’s not the case, he said.
He and his wife built their home in this part of town to avoid “obnoxious smells” and they are angry they weren’t consulted by anyone with the town considering the contract to begin this project is scheduled to be approved this week, said Nairn.
The neighbours he’s speaking for are prepared to bring a signed petition with dozens of signatures before council opposing this plan and will consider legal advice if the project proceeds as planned, he said.
Mayor Stu Wells said much of the information provided by Nairn is worrisome and would be discussed by members of council before they make a final decision to grant the tender at this site.
Members of council were under the impression dispersing excess effluent at this site would not have any negative impact on residents in terms of smell, said Wells.
Members of council were of the belief the effluent would be dispersed through ground seepage and would not support what would essentially be another effluent pond being developed at this site, said Wells.
“We will certainly look at this” before any final decision is made, he said.
Coun. C.J. Rhodes said he has received numerous emails from angry residents worried about this project and the matter will be discussed in depth by members of council before the tender is granted or rejected.
Underwood will be asked to answer numerous questions at the next meeting of council on Oct. 15 before any final decision is made about this project, said Wells.
Following Monday’s meeting, Nairn and his wife Pat said they were pleased council listened to their concerns and appear willing to reconsider the decision to proceed with this project at this site.
“We’ll have to wait and see what happens and go from there,” said Nairn. “We’re hoping for some good news.”
