Waterloo Region staff say they have found a way to cut costs as they continue looking for ways to address a water capacity constraint in the Mannheim Service Area. Staff provided an update about their latest water-related efforts during a special regional council meeting on Wednesday. During the update, they recommended an alternative option to a planned water infrastructure project known as the CAM 2W pump station. That project would have transferred water supply from the Middleton Service area to the Mannheim Service Area. The alternative option proposed by staff would involve transferring land to the Middleton Service Area, instead of building the pumping station. Staff said the new option could save $8.1 million and be completed three years earlier than the projected 2031 timeline. “This approach can be completed faster, is less expensive, and would be a permanent investment compared to the CAM 2W pumping station which would take longer, cost more, and could only be used until the capacity was required to support development in the Middleton Service Area,” a report said. The change would move 25 litre per second of demand to Middleton. Elsewhere, work at the Mannheim Water Treatment Plant is also almost finished. A treatment container was delivered in August, and crews are making the final connections to the unit. Concrete is being poured for three more containers that are set to arrive in September. The containers from Laminar Water in Cambridge represent a short-term solution to the supply constraint and will provide more filtration and capacity, however, they are not an additional water source. Staff said they have also begun the process to choose a consultant to put together a detailed design and build the Maple Grove Water System in Cambridge. The Maple Grove Water System would include two municipal water supply wells and a new water treatment plant at 200 Maple Grove Road. The region first explored building the system in 2014 and completed an environment assessment, but the project was ultimately not constructed. However, the idea had been revived in 2024. Because projects are moving forward faster than originally expected, staff said the region will not need to draw an additional 15 litres per second from the Wilmot centre wellfield after January 2027. That frees up the water to support future growth in Baden and New Hamburg. Regional Council will hold its final scheduled special meeting on the local water capacity concerns next month. After that, Regional Chair Karen Redman noted that council will need to decide if they want to continue holding dedicated special meeting on the issue after the election in October.
