Published: May 16, 2009 12:00 PM Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star
Demands for costly upgrades to Greater Vernon’s water system continue to flush out protests. The Greater Vernon Advisory Committee has been ordered by the Interior Health Authority to have a filtration system on Duteau Creek by 2015. “We’d love to have the level of treatment they require but we don’t have the money,” said director Gyula Kiss. IHA’s order comes ahead of GVAC’s original schedule of 2017 or 2018 for filtration. The price tag would be about $20 million. For director Mike Macnabb, he would like to see a cost-benefit analysis done. “Where’s the science to support that we should do all of this?” he said, adding that filtration may not actually get rid of water-borne illnesses. “The level of treatment they are expecting us to provide and pay for may not prevent what you think is the problem.”
Roger Parsonage, assistant director of health protection, defends IHA’s actions. “The issue of cost isn’t lost on us. We know they are big ticket items. But in terms of the science, the evidence is there,” he said. Some GVAC directors question the presence of cryptosporidium locally, but Parsonage says there are indications that it is present. “I hope you aren’t making decisions about what hasn’t happened instead of waiting for an outbreak to occur and then making a decision,” he said. Despite Parsonage’s comments, Kiss says IHA does little to assist utilities with upgrades. “The government gives out orders with no funding and we have no powers to protect our watersheds,” he said. Parsonage says IHA does support jurisdictions when they seek senior government funding for improvements, but ultimately, the responsibility belongs to utilities. “Source protection by itself will never be enough. Water suppliers have an obligation over the quality of water they provide,” he said. The committee is currently constructing a new $29 million water treatment plant on Duteau Creek.
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