By Matt Weingarden, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Tilbury Times Reporter
The Municipality of Chatham-Kent says it remains confident in its ability to continue supplying safe drinking water to Tilbury residents, despite ongoing reliance on a temporary water system in Wheatley following a fire at the Wheatley Water Treatment Plant.
Since the September 2023 blaze forced the shutdown of the facility, the Chatham-Kent Public Utilities Commission has been operating a temporary water treatment system in Wheatley and implemented outdoor water restrictions to manage supply.
“With the current extra demand on the Wheatley water system, we are experiencing a critically low amount of water in our reservoirs and water towers and are asking all customers to eliminate all outdoor water usage,” Karen Burgess, director of operations for water and wastewater, said in an April 25 statement.
The restrictions — which included a ban on lawn watering, washing vehicles, filling pools and outdoor construction — were lifted on May 13 for customers in both Wheatley and Tilbury.
However, a lawn watering restriction remains in place and officials are asking residents to continue complying voluntarily.
Burgess told the Tilbury Times Reporter the quality of drinking water has not been affected, and that the PUC continues to meet all provincial guidelines for treatment, disinfection and monitoring while the temporary system is in operation.
If the rebuild of the Wheatley plant — targeted for completion by August — is delayed, the municipality says contingency plans are in place to ensure a continued water supply for Tilbury.
“We will continue to utilize the temporary water treatment system that has been set up in Wheatley,” Burgess said.
“As a contingency, we can acquire water from the South Chatham-Kent Water Treatment Plant in Blenheim, along with water from the Leamington distribution system. Hauling water from the Chatham Drinking Water System to Tilbury has also been used in the past.”
She said the municipality is confident its current infrastructure and emergency supply plans will maintain safe and stable water service for the community.
Updates from the CK PUC are available on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CKPUC.
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