By Geoff Smith

N.B. business turns to alternate water source

Jul 29, 2016 | 9:45 AM

One business owner affected by North Battleford’s water restrictions is taking matters into his own hands.

Betty Bubbles Auto and RV Wash was operating again Thursday, July 28, but with its own water supply. Owner Jay Bottomley arranged to have water trucked in from an alternate source, and made the necessary electrical and pumbing connections to make it work.

Bottomley said he would be seeking reimbursement from Husky Energy.

“There’s definitely a cost to me for all the equipment that I’ve had to buy, and the labour and materials that I’m paying out to the plumbing company and to the electrician,” Bottomley said. “So I guess my priority was to get my car wash open so that my customers could come and wash.”

The city of North Battleford has been under mandatory watering restrictions since Saturday, July 23 when it shut off its river water intake from the F.E. Holliday Water Treatment Plant. Since then, the city has relied entirely on its ground water treatment plant.

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The city confirmed Thursday it was making arrangements to tap into the town of Battleford’s water supply, expected to be operational in roughly a week. Bottomley, said he was also told car washes would have to stay closed at least seven days more.

“I just didn’t feel like sitting around, and I wanted to get things going here,” he said.

As much as 250,000 litres of blended crude oil escaped from a Husky pipeline into the North Saskatchewan River northwest of Maidstone, polluting sources of water for North Battleford, Prince Albert, Melfort and other smaller communities.

Geoff Smith is battlefordsNOW’s News Director, business and agriculture reporter. He can be reached at gsmith@jpbg.ca or tweet him @smithco.