MITTIMATALIK/POND INLET - The sewage lagoon in Pond Inlet, which already had one leak, may have another and the hamlet's senior administrative officer is wondering how long it will take before they get repaired.

Accumulated water is suspected to be leaking from the sewage lagoon in Pond Inlet. The lagoon already had one leak from last year and now it might have another. The photo was taken on July 28. - photo courtesy of the Department of Community and Government Services

"We have sewage water leaking pretty well anytime the ground isn't frozen hard," said hamlet senior administrative officer Mike Richards.

Richards said last fall there was water seeping out of the lagoon. It has continued leaking since then.

The week of July 26, a water resource officer from Indian and Northern Affairs Canada was in the community conducting annual water inspections. He met with hamlet officials, inspected for any run-off from the community's waste management facility and checked for evidence of fuel or chemical spills. These samples are done in compliance with the terms and conditions of water licences issued by the Nunavut Water Board according to the Nunavut Waters and Nunavut Surface Rights Tribunal Act.

Richards said the officer told him there might be another area of the lagoon that is leaking.

Water samples will be sent to a laboratory in Yellowknife. The results of the samples and a report from the officer will not be made available until the fall.

INAC's acting regional director general for the Nunavut regional office, Bernie MacIsaac, said there is nothing that requires immediate attention from the Government of Nunavut, which is responsible for the infrastructure.

"Leaks in sewage lagoons are pretty common in our territory," he said.

MacIsaac said most problems are similar to the one in Pond Inlet, where there is an overflow of water from the lagoon. The water then pools.

The GN's Department of Community and Government Services is well aware of the leak from last year.

"We didn't really know if it was the sewage lagoon or underground water resulting from heavy rains or snow melting that was causing the leak," said Roy Green, director of community infrastructure with the department.

As a result the department is in the process of hiring a consulting engineer to do an investigation. Green said the contract should be awarded within the next couple of weeks and the consultant should be in the community later this month to start the investigation.

He estimates the cost for the consultant work to be between $30,000 and $40,000.

The investigation is only being done this year, as Green said they found out about the leak too late in the season last year.

The exact cause of the leak needs to be determined first before anything can be done, Green said.

"Once we know what the problem is, we will take immediate action to correct it," he said.

The consultant's report is expected to be issued in late September or early October. Green said if it is only a minor repair the department will try to hire a contractor to get the problem solved.

If it is a major problem, a construction contract might have to be issued meaning no solution this summer.

The current lagoon was constructed in 2003-2004. The previous lagoon had been there since 1996.

Richards said there is an ATV trail near the lagoon that people use. He added residents are concerned but there is not much the hamlet can do.

When asked if he thinks the lagoon will get fixed soon, he responded by saying:

"I think it appears the GN just doesn't have any money right now with this housing fiasco they've drained every penny around right now."

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