Residents in Blacks Harbour could be under a boil water advisory this month and Connors Bros. works to repair a leak in the infrastructure.
The fish packing company owns the municipal water supply and has faced issues in the past year – with many people having discoloured or sediment-filled water.
In a release, Eastern Charlotte said the company spent $80,000 to scan the lines, which ultimately discovered the leak.
“Connors Bros. currently has plans to repair the leak area during Oct. 18 and 19,” the release said. “Repairs may result in a boil order for all water users, who will be notified through the municipal alert system, Voyent Alert!, if required.”
At last month’s council meeting, Coun. Adam Hatt brought three jars of water. One that contained water that had not been filtered at his home – which was dark brown and filled sediment. Another that was yellow and a third from a cooler of water – which was clear.
“This is 54 weeks later, the water is not fixed,” he said at the meeting in an interview with CHCO TV. “It needs to be fixed. We’re charging residents for this, (that’s) unacceptable, you can’t, like to me I’m not drinking this.”
Blacks Harbour is, according to Mayor John Craig, the only region to not own its own water supply.
The last boil water advisory for the area was in August 2023, lasting just under a month, but issues around the water colouration and sediment have continued.
There have been disruptions to water supply though as Connors Bros. made repairs to the system.
“All work, both past and planned, has been completed at a cost to Connors Bros. and not the ratepayers of the municipal water system,” the release said.
The town said upon completion of the work, the municipality will begin flushing the lines and seek to have the municipal-owned water reservoir cleaned in the “next few months.”
In the past, Craig has been asked about why the town couldn’t simply secure it’s own water supply – saying infrastructure like easements can be difficult to acquire as many of them exist on private land.
According to the release, the town also said it is using $500,000 given to it through the integrated bilateral agreement to search for a new water supply.
“We want to keep the residents of Blacks Harbour, as well as Beaver Harbour, aware of the ongoing work being conducted by Connors Bros. and the municipality to address water issues,” said Craig in the release.
