Take control of sewage plan
Editorial - Times Colonist - February 24, 2009
At a certain point, the numbers lose much of their meaning. Our sewage treatment system might not cost $1.2 billion, we're told; it could be $1.6 billion, or even $2 billion.
We are used to government-funded projects running over their budgets, but our sewage system seems to be in a category by itself. Usually, by the time a budget is blown, construction is almost completed. In this case, we are still seven years from seeing the fruits of our spending.
The surreal nature of the cost estimates we've been handed to date can only bring fears about how high the final total will go.
But the estimates released last week should prompt some questions as well, with one at the top of the list: Who is driving this project?
It's starting to look like cost is no object, as far as our sewage system goes. Consultants are considering every possibility and adding it all together. Does anyone still care about the most sensible goal, which would be to deliver the most cost-effective system possible?
Apparently not -- not when we are looking at spending $2 billion, or roughly $7,000 for each man, woman and child who would benefit from the treatment of our sewage.
To be fair, the new report provides harder data than we have had before, with three clear options. Until now, the only cost estimate has been $1.2 billion for as many as six traditional sewage treatment plants.
Now, politicians will be able to choose between three alternatives, all offering the possibility of revenue that would offset some of the operating costs.
The three options include:
- Four treatment plants costing about $1.2 billion. They would be in the West Shore, Saanich's Haro Woods, Clover Point in Victoria and either Macaulay Point or McLaughlin Point in Esquimalt. The operating costs would be about $23.5 million a year by 2030, offset by $3.6 million in recovered water, heat and resources.
- Six plants costing $1.6 billion, with additional plants in the West Shore and in downtown Victoria or James Bay. By 2030, annual operating costs would be $29 million, with resource revenue of $7.3 million.
- Eleven plants costing $2 billion, with two additional plants in the West Shore, one near CFB Esquimalt, one near the Gorge or in Vic West and one in Oak Bay. The annual operating costs would be $33.4 million, offset by
$8.3 million in revenue.
There is no word on how the construction will affect our taxes; a report on that is to come next month.
There has also been no cost-benefit analysis of the overall project, which might have helped to answer some of the questions being raised. And there has been no definitive indication of the environmental impact of sewage treatment. We know what is happening to Juan de Fuca Strait because of today's lack of treatment, but we do not have clear answers about what will happen when treatment is started.
All in all, we are left with a sense that this massive project is moving forward of its own momentum, with eager consultants and devoted bureaucrats tweaking it and adding to it as it goes. They might have the best of intentions, but what about the taxpayers? What about the people who pay the bills?
No matter what choices are made, the sewage plants are expected to be ready for use by 2016. We should expect many more budget adjustments -- odds are, the total cost will move higher, not lower -- before they are ready.
Let's hope our local politicians are prepared to take charge of this before it spins out of control.