Oxford Water Worries Continue
Oxford residents —at least those in the downtown core— are still being inconvenienced by the town’s aged water infrastructure.
Town Clerk Linda Cloney says a water main break on James Street, which runs beside the town hall, was repaired last week, but that portion of the street remains closed as crews work to make the street passable.
Cloney says crews hope to have it open for at least one lane of traffic by tomorrow (Wednesday).
The clerk says this break was unexpected, as the overall condition of the town's water system is considered "fair", with fewer line breaks in the past year than ever before.
She understands the frustration of those who are affected when the breaks occur, and says the town is hard at work on an asset management project that will improve future maintenance and replacement of the older infrastructure.
The James Street water break possibly involved a section of the original cast iron system installed between 90 and 100 years ago.
Public works crews had quite a challenge on their hands, applying new pipe only to watch the existing sections crumble into rust once clamped together. The town had replaced the water main on James Street a few years ago, but that work did not extend to the connection at Main Street, where this break occurred.
Town staff are preparing the paperwork for an impending assessment by the Utilities and Review Board (UARB), as the current four-year water rate schedule comes to an end with the fiscal year on March 31st.
That review will inform future water rates, accounting for the system's usage levels, condition of infrastructure, future capital projects, and any needed maintenance or upgrades. It's hoped that the review would be finished by the end of January, and assist staff and council in their budget deliberations for 2022.
Cloney assures the public that the town continues to perform all of the required testing to ensure the potable water supply is safe and up to standards set by the Department of Environment, noting that internal procedures to improve management of the system are continually being updated in co-operation with the department.
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