Updates
September 16, 2024 – Bowen Island Municipality applied for a Certificate of Approval for the Loan Authorization Bylaw on August 30, 2024 and it is expected that construction of the outfall will commence in the second half of 2025. If this start date is achieved it would be feasible for the project to be completed by the end of 2025.
Notice of Intent to Direct Award
Read the notice.
Notice of Intent
This is a public notice under sections 213 and 217 of the Community Charter. The marine wastewater outfall pipe of the Snug Cove Wastewater Treatment Plant is damaged beyond repair and requires replacement. Replacing the outfall pipe will ensure that treated effluent will be discharged in accordance with BIM’s permit to discharge and will not compromise the marine environment. There are insufficient funds available in the Snug Cove Sewer Reserve to fund the replacement, and therefore the project must be funded through the use of borrowed funds.
We intend to borrow up to $1,200,000 from the Municipal Finance Authority with a 20-year maximum repayment term to fund this capital improvement. The loan would be re-paid by a combination of local service tax and user rates. If your property is within the Snug Cove Sewer Local Service Area AND is connected to or has permission to connect to the Snug Cove Sewer System, you will be subject to a local service tax for the next 20 years.
The parcel tax per property is allocated as follows:
$850/year
Council may proceed with this borrowing plan unless more than half of the landowners representing at least 50% of the assessed value of the land and improvements that would be subject to the local service tax, petition against the service by May 6, 2024.
A petition against is a voting system based on objection. If you are in favour, no action is necessary. If you disagree with this proposal, you need to “petition against” it by submitting a Petition Against Response Form. Property owners subject to the local service tax will have received a Petition Against Response Form with the notice, via mail.
This notice has been mailed directly to all properties in the Snug Cove Sewer Local Service Area that are connected to the Sewer Service, and publicly posted as of March 27, 2024.
Questions? Please contact the Corporate Officer at 604-947-4255 or bim@bimbc.ca.
Snug Cove Sewer Financial Update – March 2024
How to respond to the Notice
Background
The marine wastewater outfall pipe of the Snug Cove Waste Water Treatment Plant is damaged beyond repair and requires replacement.
Dive teams inspected the marine wastewater outfall pipe twice in 2023 to make emergency repairs as treated effluent was not discharging correctly. They identified twisted pipes with kinks and broken sections. Once the pipes were untwisted, many of the kinks were not repairable. The pipe had to be shortened by a third to enable discharge to flow freely. The effluent is now being discharged into Snug Cove rather than out past Dorman Point as required by BIM’s permit to discharge effluent into the marine water of Queen Charlotte Channel under the BC Environmental Management Act. The Ministry of Environment has been notified.
Replacing the broken outfall pipe is both a regulatory requirement and an environmental imperative.
The new pipe will be sized to enable gravity discharge of effluent and to accommodate expected future wastewater load. The current outfall pipe has a 75 mm diameter, which is insufficient for the current volume, requiring it to be pumped to keep the effluent flowing quickly.
In 2022, Great Pacific Consulting Ltd. completed an Environmental Impact Study and Preliminary Design for a new marine outfall plan. This was part of the Urban Systems Predesign Report for the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) expansion. To meet the needs of existing users, a 200mm sized outfall pipe was recommended to enable gravity discharge which will remove the need for equipment to pump the effluent. However, to accommodate future capacity, a 250mm diameter outfall pipe is recommended.
Cost Attribution
The cost to construct the replacement outfall up to 200mm pipe is attributed 100% to existing users. Accordingly, this portion of project costs will be allocated to them.
The estimated cost to upsize the outfall from 200mm to 250mm is $100,000
This differential cost to install the larger outfall pipe is attributable to future development, and may be recouped in the sewer fund through the development of a latecomer’s agreement. These agreements, approved by Council may be in place for a maximum of 15 years, and would require that developments outside of the current Local Service Area pay a proportionate share of the differential cost to construct the larger outfall pipe into the sewer reserve fund.
| Sewer Outfall Replacement Cost Estimate | |
| Great Pacific Predesign (Class C) Estimate from June 2022 | $764,000 |
| Detailed Design and Permitting, Great Pacific fee proposal, Oct 2023 | $140,000 |
| Consultant services during construction (estimated) | $75,000 |
| 30% Cost Escalation to 2025 construction | $229,200 |
| TOTAL | $1,208,200 |
This project will be paid for by an increase in Snug Cove Parcel Tax from $713 to $850 in 2024 and an increase in Snug Cove Sewer user rates by 15% in 2024, with planned annual rate increases in line with inflation.
The Snug Cove Sewer Local Area Service Committee received a presentation on the Sewer Outfall Replacement project and the Committee supported the initiation of the borrowing process.
Background Reports
March 25, 2024 Snug Cove Sewer Loan Authorization Bylaw Amendment Report
March 25, 2024 Snug Cove Sewer Financing Update Report
January 8, 2024 Staff Report re: Loan Authorization Bylaw for Snug Cove Sewer Outfall Replacement
September 11, 2023 Staff Report re: Update on Snug Cove Sewer System Issues
Next Steps
Next steps include completing the outfall design, confirming /completing permitting requirements, confirming the construction budget required, and obtaining the required approvals to borrow the funds to finance this project. There are no available reserves in the sewer fund, meaning this project will necessarily be debt financed.
Phase 1 Capacity Upgrades
This page provides information about the Outfall Replacement Project. Read here for information about the Snug Cove Wastewater Treatment Plant Phase 1 Capacity Updates that took place in 2023.