15 | Thursday, March 6, 2014 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Halton Highlights 2014 March Protecting our community and the environment by investing in infrastructure At almost $160 million, the Skyway Wastewater Treatment Plant expansion and upgrade is the largest infrastructure capital project undertaken by Halton Region. As a fiscally responsible government, Halton has partnered with the federal and provincial governments through the Green Infrastructure Fund and the project is being funded in equal parts by all three partners. The health and safety of our residents and the protection of the natural environment are key priorities for the Region and the expansion and upgrade of Skyway will help us achieve both. The larger capacity will help the Region effectively treat more wastewater from the City of Burlington and the west side of Oakville, while upgrades will help manage the increased amount of wastewater entering the plant during storms and extreme weather. Before construction started, the Skyway plant was consistently achieving higher than average water quality for a plant using secondary treatment. The upgrades will transform the plant to a tertiary plant, helping protect the Hamilton Harbour by providing advanced wastewater treatment. As a new tertiary treatment facility, Skyway will provide treatment that meets the highest effluent quality in all of Canada. Last year, our capital budget for new construction and maintenance of existing water and wastewater infrastructure was $628 million and over the next 10 years, Halton expects to spend more than $2 billion on our water and wastewater infrastructure. High quality infrastructure is one of the reasons Halton is such a great place to live, work, raise a family and retire. The Skyway project is on time, on budget and scheduled to be completed next year. Keeping you informed by highlighting what makes Halton a great place to live. Gary Carr, Regional Chair Getting you where you need to go Investing in roads To help ease congestion and improve safety, Halton increased the capital budget for regional roads from $50 million in 2006 to $289 million in 2013. To date, this has been the largest investment in our roads for Halton Region. In 2014, smart financial planning allowed Halton Region to invest $177 million in our capital road budget, while reducing property taxes by 0.4%. For up-to-date information on regional construction projects, visit Halton.ca/construction. Regional Road Network Growth Skyway Wastewater Treatment Plant 2014 934 Lane km Water infrastructure Approximately 2,200 km watermains 14 booster stations and pump houses 14 municipal wells 12 water treatment plants 22 reservoirs and storage facilities 2016 1,087 Lane km Ensuring clean and safe drinking water Having access to safe and clean drinking water is critical to the Halton community. Halton's ongoing investment in this infrastructure ensures that the Region's water supply consistently meets and exceeds all provincial requirements. While we invest in our infrastructure, we also invest in our staff ensuring they are highly qualified, licensed and dedicated to delivering safe drinking water. Halton's water supplies are tested by licensed staff 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Daily Treated Water 168,955 m3 = Meetings at Halton Region 1151 Bronte Rd., Oakville L6M 3L1 Mar. 18, 9:30 a.m. Mar. 19, 9:30 a.m. Mar. 19, 1:30 p.m. Mar. 26, 9:30 a.m. Health & Social Services Cmte. Planning & Public Works Cmte. Administration & Finance Cmte. Regional Council Olympic sized swimming pools 67x Please contact us as soon as possible, if you have any accessibility needs at Halton Region events or meetings. This page has been donated by this newspaper to communicate important information to Halton residents at no cost to taxpayers.