Westlock Regional Water Services Commission manager Edward LeBlanc said the waterline north is about 48 per cent complete.
Work on the long-awaited waterline north to Westlock County hamlets is progressing at a steady pace and residents of Pibroch could be the first to take advantage of the new infrastructure as soon as later this month.
Westlock Regional Water Services Commission manager Edward LeBlanc said the project to connect Fawcett, and all the hamlets along the way, to the Westlock waterline is about 48 per cent completed, but he will have more information after a July 8 construction meeting.
“The contractor is proposing to service the hamlets during construction, meaning Pibroch is anticipated to be serviced with commission water sometime in July,” said LeBlanc.
T.A. Excavating Ltd. was awarded the contract late last year and started construction earlier this spring with the hope the whole 46-kilometre project would be completed by Sept. 1.
“The contractor has indicated that they’ll be able to meet the September project deadline,” said LeBlanc.
Three crews have been hard at work to meet the construction deadline with one boring a hole from Fawcett south, a second working northward towards Pibroch from Westlock and a third setting up around Dapp to link the two.
“I’ve been getting the reports and it sounds like everything is going pretty good,” said Westlock town councillor Clem Fagnan, who chairs the water commission.
The commission originally estimated the project would cost $7.1 million, based on 2012 figures, but after tendering it out in 2017 that estimate increased by more than $2 million.
After a year of friction between members of the water commission over how to cover the cost of the project last fall, the provincial government announced $2.4 million in additional grant funding for the project to move forward.
The planned route will follow Range Road 265 to Pibroch, then follow the existing line to Dapp, then move along Highway 661 and turn north on Range Road 272, then turn onto Township Road 642, head west on Range Road 13B and then north into Fawcett.
Any rural residents who would like to tie in to the line are asked to contact Westlock County at 780-349-3346.
