Oliver, British Columbia, September 5, 2012 – The Town of Oliver is upgrading domestic and irrigation water service to a 17-kilometre area that extends from McIntyre Bridge on Highway 97 to the north end of Osoyoos Lake.
"Our government is proud to invest in a cleaner, safer and more reliable water supply for residents of Oliver,"
said Dan Albas, Member of Parliament for Okanagan—Coquihalla, on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. "Support for local infrastructure improvements is part of our plan to create jobs, promote economic growth and ensure long-term prosperity – in British Columbia and all across Canada."
Work will see the construction of the Buchanan Road Well, featuring state-of-the-art disinfection technology to provide residents with drinking water that meets the Town's standards. A key component includes a drilled crossing under the Okanagan River that will improve the reliability of the water distribution system.
"The approved funds will assist the Town in supplying residents, both within the municipal boundaries and the rural areas, with water fully complying with regulatory agency drinking water standards,"
said Ron Hovanes, Mayor of Oliver. "This project is an important component of an overall drinking water quality improvement program initiated by the Town, with Federal and Provincial Government assistance, in 2005 comprising the first phase of rural area water system twinning."
The Government of Canada is contributing $407,000 through the Gas Tax Fund. The estimated project cost is $936,000, with the remainder of the funding being provided by the Town of Oliver.
"In this day and age, we often take safe drinking water for granted. The truth is that issues such as population growth, contaminants and changing community needs require us to ensure we pay attention to how we source and disinfect our water,"
said John Slater, MLA for Boundary-Similkameen. "This project is vital to protecting the health of B.C. families in the region, and is a great example of gas tax dollars at work."
Canada's Gas Tax Fund provides stable, long-term funding to local governments to help them build and revitalize public infrastructure. In December 2011, the Government of Canada passed legislation to make the Gas Tax Fund a permanent annual investment of $2 billion per year. The Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) administers the Gas Tax Fund in BC, in collaboration with Canada and British Columbia.
"Drinking water standards have moved consistently upward in recent years, and meeting those standards is a challenge for the property tax base in many places,"
said Heath Slee, President of UBCM. "By transferring federal revenues to local governments, the Gas Tax Fund is accelerating the pace of water system improvements in BC communities."
Investing in infrastructure is a key part of the Government of Canada's plan for jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. The Government of Canada is meeting with provinces, territories, municipalities through municipal associations and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, as well as other key stakeholders in a series of roundtables to develop a new long-term infrastructure plan. This plan will focus on investments that support job creation and economic growth, while building strong, prosperous communities across the country. Working together to develop this plan will provide new opportunities for all orders of government and the private sector to build partnerships to improve public infrastructure in Canada.
For additional information about investments in infrastructure and to stay up-to-date with Web feeds, visit www.infrastructure.gc.ca.
For further information about Canada's Economic Action Plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca
For more information:
Geneviève Sicard
Office of the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
613-991-0700
Jeff Rud
Communications Director
Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development
250-208-4028
Paul Taylor
Relationships and Communications Advisor
UBCM
250-356-2938
Cathy Cowan
Corporate Officer
Town of Oliver
250-485-6207
Infrastructure Canada
613-960-9251
Toll free: 1-877-250-7154
