Community News

WELL DRILLING PROJECT IN ALLISTON COMES UP SHORT

TOWN WAS HOPING SITE WOULD PROVIDE ADDITIONAL 1,640 CUBIC METRES OF WATER PER DAY

BRAD PRITCHARD bpritchard@simcoe.com

A test well drilling project to find an additional water supply in New Tecumseth to meet future growth demands did not produce the results the town was hoping for.

The project, which was completed last July at the Hillcrest Well site in Alliston, saw two pilot holes drilled in 2021 at the property located on George Street in the northwest end of the community.

The well was established more than 60 years ago and is not being used, but the town maintains it as a reserve well.

While the town was anticipating that the pilot holes would yield between 12.6 and 19 litres per second, the holes only produced 7.5 litres and 3.9 litres per second.

Given the poor results, it was recommended that a new production well not be built at the site.

In his report to council, project manager Caleb Blain said the town needs to address a long-term water supply deficit of 3,900 cubic metres per day.

He said staff had planned for a new pump house at the site to come online at the end of last year to provide an additional supply of about 1,640 cubic metres per day.

But now that the site cannot provide sufficient water, alternatives will have to be studied.

He said this will impact the town's ability to approve

new development and meet its obligation to existing developments, but the full scope of the impact has not yet been calculated.

Council will be receiving a report in the future outlining the impacts.

Prior to the testing at the Hillcrest Well, 13 tests were performed at other sites as part of an exploration program conducted in 2018 and 2019, but the aquifer conditions were not favourable.

The town has a water capacity of 29,666 cubic metres per day, including 9,500 cubic metres from the Collingwood pipeline, 15,136 cubic metres per day from the Alliston wells and 5,030 cubic metres per day from the Tottenham wells.

In 2022, the monthly average demand in Alliston was 9,013 cubic metres per day, and Tottenham's average demand was 2,467 cubic metres per day.

In August of last year, Collingwood and New Tecumseth signed a new water supply agreement and the $121-million expansion project at the Raymond A. Barker Water Treatment Plant in Collingwood. New Tecumseth's share of the plant expansion has been estimated to cost $71 million.

Once the upgrades are completed in 2026, New Tecumseth's supply from the pipeline is supposed to increase to 13,400 cubic metres per day, and again in 2032 to 23,500 cubic metres per day.

Until additional water supply comes online, new developments on lands that were not previously allocated a portion of the town's existing water capacity will not be able to proceed to construction.

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2023-03-23T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-03-23T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://communitynews.pressreader.com/article/281530820268646

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