Mayor wants monthly updates on Veolias progress with water quality

Sackville's mayor is demanding that town council be provided with regular updates from the company that operates the town's water treatment plant.
Mayor Pat Estabrooks insisted during council's regular meeting April 14 that she be supplied with up-to-date reports from the project manager of Veolia Water Canada Inc., the company that was hired to improve the town's water system two years ago.
"We should be getting monthly reports," she told town CAO Barry Carroll. "I'd like to have a report on my desk every month.
Carroll explained, however, that town staff do receive regular updates from Veolia and the reports would likely be too "technical" to pass on to council.
Veolia took over operation of the town's water treatment plant in May 2007 after a controversial decision by the then-council to award the company a seven-year $1.25-million contract.
The company was hired to bring in the required expertise to help the town solve some of its longstanding water issues.
Several months later, town council and the public were updated on the progress that had been made at that point. At a council meeting in July, project manager Rick Bennett provided details of the steps that had been taken to start the process of improving Sackville's water. These included critical equipment repairs at the plant as well as new pH level and rust corrosion control programs.
Since then, however, the public has received very little information on the continued progress of the town's water service.