(Photo: Indigenous Services Canada)
Muskoday First Nation is celebrating the opening of a new water treatment plant in their community.
The new facility will provide a safe and reliable water supply to all homes on reserve, as well as to community buildings such as the administration building and band hall, the community health centre, elementary school, Awasis Daycare, post office, and the gas bar/convenience store.
“This is a great day for Muskoday First Nation to commemorate, as this new water treatment plant facility gives the Nation the ability to enhance the distribution of safe, purified, and clean drinking water to the community and beyond. This state-of-the-art water treatment plant ensures the people of Muskoday First Nation have direct access to an abundance of this sacred essential element (water) to live, thrive, and survive for generations to come.” Stated Muskoday Chief, Ronald Bear.
Before the opening of the facility, the community, which is almost 30 kilometers from Prince Albert, relied solely on the Prince Albert Rural Water Utility to meet their water needs.
In 2014, a discussion sparked in the community about building their own water treatment plant due to the rising prices of bringing in water from Prince Albert. In 2016, the Prince Albert Water Plant’s intake pipe closed due to an oil spill in the North Saskatchewan River. The upstream spill forced Muskoday to declare a state of emergency and further justified the idea of building their own water treatment plant.
In May 2021, the community broke ground for the new water treatment plant, and in November 2022, the facility began operations.
The plant features an efficient system of biofilters and reverse osmosis to treat the water. The $8.6 million project, supported by ISC, also included the installation of new wells and groundwater pumping infrastructure.
“My understanding is that this water treatment plant would probably be good for at least 15 to 20 years before we have to do any upgrades; it kind of ensures, at least for the next couple of decades, that we’re well supplied with water,” explained Chief Bear.
The new water treatment plant has also provided job and training opportunities for the First Nation’s members.
“This new water treatment plant breathes life into the promise of safe and reliable drinking water for Muskoday First Nation. Now, the community can manage their own water supply in a self-determined way. Following the lead of First Nations, we will support communities’ access to clean drinking water for generations to come.” Said Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indigenous Services Canada.