Update on the Ward 2 Water Production Wells – Revised October 16, 2023
Sussex wishes to advise residents of Ward 2 of its pending schedule to begin preventative maintenance on Well 3 of the Ward 2 Water Distribution System between October 16th and October 19th to conduct this maintenance. Sussex will begin a series of procedures to connect the lower portions of Ward 2 between the Community Services Department building at 1067 Main Street and all subdivision connections off Main Street, Needle Street and Dutch Valley Road to supply water off the Ward 1 water supply. These changes will permit the town to supply water to those areas while the preventative maintenance is conduced on Well 3. This work is expected to take 4 weeks to complete. All preventative maintenance steps and the temporary changes to the supply interconnect to Ward 1 have been conducted with the coordination and consultations with the Departments of Health and Environment and the Town’s consultants as we work through this needed preventative maintenance.
Residents may experience changes in water pressure as these procedures are conducted. Residents should expect to experience a drop in water pressure of approximate 10 psi. Sussex will also be adjusting chlorine levels in the town’s disinfection systems to maintain potabilty requirements under our Approvals to Operate the water distribution systems.
Sussex continues to remediate the Well 2 production well in Ward 2 to address high turbidity levels measured during production. Sussex has secured delivery of the necessary continuous chlorination measuring equipment and as well the turbidity measuring equipment required by the Departments of Health and Environment and Local Government for all three production wells in Ward 2. Well 2 will remain out of production for the foreseeable future while the Town completes reconfiguration of the supply lines to accommodate equipment installation at this production well. All three production wells in Ward 2 will have equipment installed to measure both chlorine and turbidity that was required since April 2020 but has not yet been installed.
Anyone who may be interested in further information or clarification may contact Sussex CAO, Mr. Scott Hatcher, P. Eng. during normal business hours at (506) 432-4540.
Update September 26, 2023
This summer Ward 2 (the former Village of Sussex Corner) experienced water quality issues in two of the three wells located in the ward. As a result, the Department of Health issued a boil order, and it remained in place until the Town was able to successfully address the immediate issues that had been identified. We are grateful for the support of the Department of Health and the dedication of our staff who worked tirelessly to ensure that residents had access to safe drinking water.
Although the initial cause of the boil order was a result of a higher-than-normal coliform counts at several testing sites, other areas of concern were identified in the process of examining well site conditions. In particular, continuous chlorine and turbidity monitoring equipment as identified in the former village’s Operating Approval issued on April 1, 2020, had not yet been installed. Our testing also indicated elevated levels of manganese. Records from the former village indicate that these levels had been increasing in recent years.
We are currently in the process of securing continuous chlorine and turbidity monitoring equipment and expect that the installation will be complete and operational by October 31, 2023. The capital cost of this equipment is $60,000.
To address elevated manganese levels, the Council has engaged a specialized hydrogeologic consultant to begin the process of introducing preventative maintenance on the production wells in Ward 2. $130,000 has been budgeted to complete the necessary work required and a work plan has been created and approved by the Departments of Health and Environment. This plan will form the blueprint for all future preventative and continuous maintenance to ensure that turbidity and manganese levels are minimized and remain in line with provincial guidelines.
Sussex Council will continue to monitor all progress regarding Ward 2 wells and will be reviewing a status report during their October meetings. A copy of this report is attached for anyone interested in the information. Anyone who may be interested in further information or clarification may contact Sussex CAO, Mr. Scott Hatcher, P. Eng during normal business hours at (506) 432-4540.