Rhino's Ramblings - Smoke On The Water

By Robert Thomas Opinion/Commentary

In 1972 Deep Purple released the monster hit “Smoke On The Water” as part of their Machine Head album which chronicled the loss of their recording digs due to a fire at a time they were under pressure to get that album out.

Well Deep Purple turned that fire into a monster hit and the rest is history as they say.

The same sort of held true last Monday evening in the post Council news scrum when Mayor Clive Tolley answered questions from the media about the budget - the lacking legally allowed to be released further details in the Moose Jaw Police Service’s budget - and the report from the Buffalo Pound Water Treatment Corporation delivered by Ryan Johnson the plant’s general manager and former City of Moose Jaw engineer.

In his report - which I am planning to publish later this week - Johnson turned in some impressive numbers on what could best be described the sunny spot when it comes to Moose Jaw’s water supply.

“I cannot believe you let Tolley (new mayor Clive Tolley) blow smoke up your ass,” a local told me on the weekend.

It was a bit of an attack on myself and my seeming willingness to not challenge the new mayor on an issue so near and dear to many people and that is the quality of Moose Jaw’s water.

Now here is the thing what Mayor Clive Tolley told me when I asked about what he thought about the quality of Moose Jaw’s water at the plant is 100 percent true. It is not a subjective answer but one based upon facts.

In the past, let us say early 1980’s and even earlier, Moose Jaw was taking a bit of a hammering when it came to the quality of the H2O that came out of your tap because we were tied into the same plant as Regina. It was back in the days when if you listened to morning radio in Saskatoon the running joke was the quality of water in Regina.

And yeah the criticisms at that time were well warranted when it came to the Queen City’s water it smelt and often tasted like let us just say crap. Some of it was the product out of the water treatment plant and then the addition of well water.

Well way back then there were major changes made out at the water treatment plant that not only got Moose Jaw out of the joke department when it came to the water quality but actually won accolades. It still holds true today.

Certainly there were algae problems out at Buffalo Pound in the past few years that took away from the quality of Moose Jaw’s H2O. Something which the Saskatchewan Water Corporation partially helped solve by simply increasing the flow down the Qu’Appelle Valley and thereby flushing the algae away from the intakes.

The supply system to get that water to your tap though is a different matter and not part of the questions I directed at the Mayor.

Now where Moose Jaw does have problems with its water supply is when it hits the local distribution system and how the rotting, deteriorating and often well beyond its life cycle cast iron water mains, cement asbestos water mains, leaky pump station and reservoirs leave a lot to be desired. Not just in water quality but also those missing Bordens in your wallet.

This is where a local water filtration company has made a major killing in the area of you need your water filtered to get out the impurities.

My next guess is once the work is finished out at the Buffalo Pound Water Treatment plant, and they kick the new fluoridation system in, you are going to see ads out there to filter that out as well.

It is what I suppose you see as a business marketing solution to earn capitalist cash as well as getting those pesky Communist plots out of the Moose Jaw water supply through fluoridation.

You just cannot be too careful as they say when it comes to Commies.

It is true there are lead pipes in the City’s water distribution system but they are not in the main system but rather they are part of the system from your home to the water main or service connection.

It is mainly in older homes where back in the day lead pipe was acceptable and not seen as a health risk. Hey even the Romans used lead as sweetener in some foods but at the same time their water systems from 2,000 years ago is still used in some parts of Europe.

If you are looking for an area of subterfuge where the City or should I say the former City Manager in my opinion played the populace then this is it but it has nothing to do with the questions asked last Monday evening.

In my opinion the really sneaky part is when it comes to the City’s water and sewer system was under the tutelage of former City Manager Matt Noble the City transferred ownership of the sewer line or service connection from the mains to the home itself to you.

Then a couple of years later they discontinued the program where they paid a share of the no-corrode sewer service line and presto bingo with nothing more than a whimper saved he City a potential $4 million payout to homeowners.

The City was financially off the hook to those properties which had no choice but I believe use the tar paper sewer pipe marketed and/or installed by the City way back in the day.

Sneaky now aren’t they and yup they did it over time right in front of everyone with nary a peep of complaint, but alas that is the topic of a future story or column.

But getting back to what Mayor Tolley told me, yes it is true.

Moose Jaw has won accolades in the past about the quality of water supplied from the plant.

Yes I actually remember the story from so long ago it seems from when I worked at the newspaper and tea totalling (OK coffee drinking) City Hall reporter Ron Walter got the story about the upgraded water quality.

If there is anyone who can tell you if water is good or not in coffee, tea or straight from the tap Ron is the best choice for that. Let us just say he knows his coffee and the water used for it.

Traveling to area communities for coffee and knowing where the best is served is Ron’s forte 100 percent.

The stories you hear about how Moose Jaw’s water has lead in it comes from the some of the service connections - in the older areas of the city - where lead pipe and not copper was used for the service connection.

So what did Mayor Tolley actually say?

“Well Mr Johnson has said as far as he is concerned he has not heard anything about supply problems. There was a question I believe about the drought and he said there was no supply problems,” Mayor Tolley responded when I asked him about the effects of the drought.

On the water quality out at the plant Mayor Tolley said the water Moose Jaw receives from the plant is second to none and on that the evidence backs him up 100 percent.

When it comes to getting grants from the upper levels of government the water plant has been highly successful and saved local property taxpayers - believe it or not - millions in bills.

“You can’t live without water and we have got a very good plant. We have a very good arrangement with the City of Regina and there are an awful lot of users as well on that line so I think we are doing pretty well when it comes to water resource,” the Mayor said.

“We are fortunate our Moose Jaw water is available and it is very well treated. I remember going out there years and years ago to the opening of that plant and we had the guy from the science show, Bob MacDonald, and we got a sample of water that day and we had it put into wine bottles and capped and stuff and he said our water was one of the best in the world and so I have got no reason to dispute that,” he said.

From the people back in the day when I did some fact checking yes Mayor Tolley is 100 percent truthful and was not blowing smoke on the water when it comes to the water quality provided by the Buffalo Pound Water Treatment Plant.

Are there bigger issues when it comes to Moose Jaw’s water supply and the spin from City Hall? Yes in my opinion I believe there is.

There is for instance the loss of the hoped for $6 million in upper level funding for cast iron water main replacement and how the City was turned down in 2021 and 2022. Something Council of the day said would not happen.

Something which is now played down and not seen as a big deal unless you notice an increasing water and property tax bill to make up for it.

Money coming straight out of your wallets and how in the end how are residents going to be able to afford it.

That is a different story and song released in 1979 by AC/DC and a certain highway destination more than a few say the City is financially ultimately heading towards.