Public Notice

Waywayseecappo Water Treatment Plant – Public Comments Invited

April 2, 2024 – The Indigenous Services Canada must determine whether the proposed Waywayseecappo Water Treatment Plant, located in Waywayseecappo is likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

To help inform this determination, the Indigenous Services Canada is inviting comments from the public respecting that determination. All comments received will be considered public and may be posted online.

Written comments must be submitted by May 2, 2024 to:

Tebesi Mosala
200-365 Hargrave, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 3A3
204-298-2329
tebesi.mosala@sac-isc.gc.ca

The Proposed Project

The proposed location for the new WTP is in Waywayseecappo First Nation, Manitoba, approximately 3.7 km south of Provincial Road 45 at approximate UTM Coordinates 14 U 5617604 m N, 365349 m E (Appendix A, Figure 1).

The Site is within the Hamiota Ecodistrict in the Aspen Parkland Ecoregion of Manitoba (Smith et al., 1998). Soils in this ecodistrict are dominantly organic-rich soils derived from glacial till (Smith et al., 1998). Typical vegetation in the ecodistrict includes slough grass (pasture grass, grama grass, sage grass, spear grass), sedges and rushes, willow, and trembling aspen, along with shrubs such as prairie rose, silverberry and snowberry. (Smith et al., 1998). This ecoregion contains habitat for white-tailed deer, coyote, red fox, ground squirrel, cottontail rabbit, redback vole, and deer mice. (Smith et al., 1998).

The Site consists of land to accommodate a new WTP, truck garage, new raw water pumphouse and raw water intake structure/ intake line, a process waste structure/line, and watermain connection to the existing school (Appendix A, Figure 1-1 &1-2). New WTP Building, Truck Garage and Watermain The location for the new WTP (the Site) is an undeveloped, unoccupied, grassy area with low-lying marsh approximately 30 m to the east, an occupied residential house approximately 80 m north, and a gravel community road and right of way approximately 200 m east (Appendix B, Photo ID 1 &2). The Site will also include a detached, 6-bay truck garage located approximately 32 m north of the proposed WTP building. A proposed watermain will run along the existing community road right of ways from the WTP location approximately 200 m east, 1.4 km south,1.6 km east, and 400 m south to provide potable water to the existing community school. Raw Water Intake and Pumphouse The location of the raw water pumphouse is on the shore of Berney Lake on undisturbed land at approximate UTM coordinates 14U 5616806 m N 363941 m E. The location for the pumphouse and the alignment for the intake line was largely cleared for geotechnical investigations and is surrounded by undisturbed forest consisting primarily of trembling aspen, white birch and poplar (Appendix B, Photo ID 3 and 4). The proposed raw water intake line runs from Berney Lake approximately 1.6 km northeast to the new WTP, going through the recently cleared right of way in the forested area and through agricultural cropland (Appendix A, Figure 1-1). Process Waste Line and Concentrate Holding Pond For the new WTP, a process waste line will run below ground at a depth of approximately 2.4 m from the new WTP building approximately 500 m westward through the agricultural cropland to a proposed concentrate holding pond at approximate UTM coordinates 14 U 5617391 m N 364841 m E, where it will be discharged seasonally via a concentrate discharge line running approximately 260 m north to an unnamed tributary creek to the Birdtail River. 

List of all Easements and Rights of Way Affecting Properties: A gravel community road, overhead powerline, and right-of-way are located approximately 200 m east of the new WTP location. A potable water line is proposed to run from the new WTP to the existing community school, along the existing gravel road right of way