A new wastewater treatment plant under construction in B.C.’s most populated region is four years beyond its original completion date and more than five times over budget.
Here’s what’s important to know about it.
The project
The North Shore Wastewater treatment plant was first announced in 2011 as a $700 million project to replace the existing Lions Gate plant, which is one of the last on the West Coast of North America to provide only primary wastewater treatment, meaning it only removes waste from water that floats or sinks.
There are five wastewater treatment plants across Metro Vancouver, in five separate sewerage areas. Collectively, they process more than 1 billion litres of wastewater produced by the region’s nearly 2.5 million residents.
Currently, the new North Shore plant, located at the corner of West 1st Street and Phillip Avenue, is only partially built. When completed, it will serve more than 300,000 residents and businesses in the Districts of North and West Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver along with the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
It’s needed partly to meet Metro Vancouver’s growing population, but also to comply with federal regulations announced in 2012 that require municipalities to do secondary wastewater treatment, where dissolved organic material is removed.
Problems
After it was announced in 2011, there was very little attention given to the project. Ten years later, the regional government, Metro Vancouver, publicly shared details of a conflict with the contractor working on the project, Acciona Wastewater Solutions LP.
In September of that year, Acciona laid off the majority of its workers at the project site amid accusations from Metro Vancouver that it was not honouring its contract obligations.
The regional government said the completion date would be pushed back to 2023. The new budget for the project was more than $1 billion.
Contractor terminated
In October 2021, Metro Vancouver terminated the contract with Acciona over long construction delays and a rising price tag for the project. It said the new plant, despite being three years late, was only 36 per cent complete.
For its part Acciona said it was committed to finishing the project, but was dealing with unforeseen challenges such as design changes to the project it alleged Metro Vancouver demanded.
The acrimony led to legal action involving the two sides. Acciona is trying to recover $250 million in damages and unpaid bills, while Metro Vancouver said Acciona signed fixed-price and fixed-date contracts, and despite revisions to the agreed timeline, failed to meet key construction milestones.
As the suit plays out in court, Metro Vancouver said it’s “confident” its decision to terminate was justified.
Metro Vancouver has since hired PCL Constructors Westcoast Inc. and designer AECOM to take over the project, while it seeks a new contractor to complete it.
More costs
In March of this year though came the biggest news over the project: an even higher price tag of $3.86 billion.
A Metro Vancouver Board task force determined the higher cost by taking into account inflation of construction and labour costs, work that was needed to address design and construction deficiencies for the project and how other large infrastructure projects were competing for the same resources.
“The reality is, the cost to deliver the program has changed significantly since its initial estimate 13 years ago,” , Commissioner and CAO of Metro Vancouver Jerry Dobrovolny said in a statement at the time.
Taxpayers pay more
While Metro Vancouver defended its new cost analysis and what it called, “a viable path forward,” it also shared how it would raise the funds needed to complete the project through taxpayers.
Combined, the federal and provincial governments are giving $405 million to the project.
Households in North Vancouver were at one time facing an extra $725 per year on their tax bills for 30 years in a row to make the numbers add up for the project. But Metro Vancouver asked all municipalities in the region to help out, and despite not shouldering as much as proposed, they will take on some of the cost for the next 15 years.
The cost-sharing plan will reduce what North Shore households have to pay to $590 a year for 30 years, while those in other areas of the region, who don’t benefit directly from the new wastewater treatment plant on the North Shore, will pay between $80 and $150 each year for 15 years.
Accountability
The ups and downs and ballooning costs with the project have led to disdain from residents about having to shoulder more costs during an affordability crisis.
Metro Vancouver directors have approved a cost-sharing plan for a new wastewater plant in North Vancouver that has ballooned in cost from an original $700 million to close to $4 billion. Chad Pawson heard from some of the decision-makers involved.
Politicians are having trouble explaining to their constituents whether they are receiving good governance from their regional government.
Several are asking for third-party oversight of the wastewater treatment plant.
On Thursday a group of local politicians from B.C.’s Lower Mainland said they would ask the provincial auditor general to investigate how the cost of a wastewater treatment plant could balloon to $3.86 billion.
The group says the mismanagement of the megaproject is staggering, and Metro Vancouver taxpayers deserve to know how it went wrong and why they are stuck with the bill for the next 30 years.
The provincial Opposition Party, B.C. United, has also demanded the province do a full audit and core review of the project.
Metro Vancouver says on the North Shore Wastewater Plant’s website page that construction on the new plant will take until 2030 to finish.