SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - The CEO of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation says if the city follows through on discussions to close its pumphouse at the Yellowknife River, it could double the cost of water delivered to Dettah.

John Carter, CEO of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, says if the city closes down Pumphouse No.2 at the Yellowknife River, it will double the costs of delivering water to Dettah. - Terrence McEachern/NNSL photo

"I have one water truck and one driver right now," said John Carter.

"If I had to add a second truck, the existing setup is such that, for whatever reason, the (driver) can't deliver enough water in a five-day work week. I might have to add a second truck, and if I have to add a second truck full-time, that would double my costs."

It currently costs the band $650 a month to deliver water twice a week to each household twice a week from the city's Pumphouse No. 2 on the Yellowknife River, which amounts to about $780,000 a year in total, said Carter. The band charges households $85 a month based on a usage of 10,000 litres of water and subsidizes the rest.

If the city were to close Pumphouse No. 2 it would mean Dettah would have to get its water from either Pumphouse No. 1 or 3 in Yellowknife, which would add another eight kilometres to the 16 km drive to Pumphouse No. 2, said Carter.

Chris Greencorn, the city's manager of public works, confirmed it is considering closing down Pumphouse No. 2 after completing a new $25 million water treatment facility because water may no longer be drawn from the Yellowknife River but from Great Slave Lake. He said that no final decision has yet been made.

As it stands now, some residents in Dettah are already complaining that they run out of water too early between deliveries. Henry Beaulieu's family has at times had to do without water. Beaulieu lives with his wife and their two children in a three-bedroom house using a 1,100-litre water tank. He said water has been an issue in the community since the 1980s.

To respond to the complaints, the Yellowknives Dene First Nation is looking to hire a consultant to study the feasibility of increasing the size of residents' water tanks.

"People (are) feeling their tanks aren't large enough and we can't afford to increase the frequency of our water delivery," said Carter.

"So, what we're trying to do is supply larger tanks where that's possible so people can survive on the two deliveries a week."

Carter said the first phase of the project will be to determine, depending on the size of the house and the physical space available, whether it is possible to replace some homes' water and sewage tanks with larger ones.

For houses that meet this condition, the next phase will be to determine who pays for the cost of the larger tanks. He suggested one possibility is cost-sharing with the residents.

Beaulieu wants both a larger tank and to have the water delivery increased from two to three days a week.

"It goes quick," he said.

Beaulieu said it isn't uncommon for his family to run out of water between the Monday and Thursday delivery days, but it can go even quicker if he has other family members visiting.

"You don't do the dishes, you don't do the laundry. You just have to wait it out and tough it out," he said.

Carter said the proposal to study the need for larger water and sewage tanks is different from another idea of the band acquiring its own water treatment facility. This is currently being studied by the consulting firm Ferguson Simek Clark. It is looking at whether there "is a cheaper, more cost-effective way of delivering water in Dettah," said Carter.

He said the situation with Ndilo is slightly different because the water is delivered by the City of Yellowknife. But overall, he said, the study could conclude the best option is the one the band is currently doing and not involve a water treatment facility.

"It's got to be a proper water treatment plant, and you're looking at possibly as much as $4 million to $5 million," he said.

"How many years does it take to pay back, given that it has an operating life of probably 20 years? And the answer may be 'you know what, it may be cheaper to deliver the water by truck.' That's why I have an engineering firm doing the study."

Carter expects this study to be completed in early fall.