EVANSVILLE—Burpee/Mills township is undertaking a preliminary report for an extension to an outlet for drain one in the municipality.
“We have notified the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) we are undertaking a preliminary report for an extension of the outlet for Burpee-Mills drain number one,” stated Burpee-Mills Reeve Ken Noland last week. “We have to notify the MNR of what we are doing, and will have to wait 30 days before an engineer is appointed to do the preliminary work, which means no other work can be done on the drain until this work has been completed.”
Mr. Noland said, “if we decided to go to a full report at this time, and it failed, whoever initiated the report would be responsible for all the costs involved. By going with the preliminary report under the provincial municipal drain act, there is 66 percent funding available. If, for instance, a landowner initiated the study under section 78 of the Drainage Act and it failed, they (landowner) would be on the hook for the costs involved.”
“The original report just stops at the north end of Lorne Lake, where the drain runs into,” continued Mr. Noland. “The south end of the lake is where access water goes in, and there is some beaver activity buildup on the south end, which is preventing the drain from working properly.”
“It is a municipal responsibility to maintain drains, and in this case the drain is not functioning properly and is beyond the scope of the original engineers report,” said Mr. Noland. “We need to incorporate the south end into the drain report, and that is why we are undertaking the preliminary report.”
Mr. Noland acknowledged, “these are contentious issues, and we want to get a professional opinion.” He also noted there will be public meetings once the report is completed, and there is also an appeals process in place.
