St. John's sewage plant fix will cost millions

The City of St. John's will go to court to recover some of the money it will have to spend to fix problems at its waste water treatment plant.

"The cost will be multi-millions of dollars," Deputy Mayor Shannie Duff told reporters Monday. "We don't know ourselves yet exactly how many (millions) because we're getting estimates done, again by experts, on this process."

The city expects it will take months to fix the recently completed plant, which cost about $150 million to build. It treats sewage and other waste water collected from around St. John's.

City staff had to shut down one of its two treatment tanks after the problem was discovered with its lining. Made of a latex-like material, large strips of the lining have peeled away.

"The problem is that the concrete was not properly prepared, so that this special liner — which is one which protects the concrete from acid, which is part of the process in the disgester tank — failed," Duff said.

The repairs will start in January and may not be complete until the fall.

In the meantime, waste will be channelled into the only other digester tank. However, the city expects that tank will also have to be repaired.

Duff said it's too early to estimate how much the repairs will cost or which companies are at fault.

"It's not one contractor involved. There are many contractors and there are specialized inspectors and specialized consultants on every aspect of this process," she said.

Meanwhile, the city insists that recurring odour problems at the plant off Southside Road are not related to issues with the linings in the tanks. But officials say that could add to odour problems in the coming months.