PEI

Another $6M coming for Charlottetown water project

Ottawa and the P.E.I. government have put up millions of dollars toward the completion of a new water supply for the city of Charlottetown.

Pipes and pumps to carry water to the city get funding

Workers install the half-metre water main that will carry water from the Miltonvale well field to Charlottetown. (Submitted)

Ottawa and the P.E.I. government have put up millions of dollars toward the completion of a new water supply for the city of Charlottetown.

The final phases for the new well field at Miltonvale include the pipes to carry the water into the city, at a cost of $5.25 million, and pumps and treatment systems at the source, at a cost of $2.8 million.

The federal government will pick for half the cost of the two finishing projects — just over $4 million — with the city and province each contributing a quarter of the cost.

Easing pressure on the Winter River watershed

The Miltonvale well field, which is expected to cost a total of $20 million, is meant to reduce the amount of water the city draws from the Winter River watershed, where it gets virtually all its water.

The local watershed group  has complained for years about springs drying up because of the water the city was drawing out, and in 2012 Environment Canada warned the city it was taking too much.

Miltonvale was identified as a new potential well site in 2001, but the city did not purchase land for it until 2012.

When completed next year, the Miltonvale well field is expected to supply one quarter of Charlottetown's water.