The completion of Woodstock’s new sewage treatment plant was marked today by local residents and invited guests. The $3.2-million facility was funded under the Canada-New Brunswick Infrastructure Program.

Taking part in the event were Andy Savoy, MP for Tobique- Mactaquac, on behalf of the Honourable Joseph McGuire, Minister for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA); Honourable David Alward, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture, on behalf of Premier Bernard Lord, Minister responsible for the Regional Development Corporation; and Jeff L. Wright, Mayor of Woodstock.

Today’s event was made possible thanks to funding totaling $3,204,150, which included a financial amendment to the Woodstock Treatment Plant – Aerated Lagoon project announced in May 2004, and funded under the same tri- partite infrastructure program. The project involved the construction of a new aerated lagoon wastewater treatment plant on a site north of the Beardsley Road. The completed project is replacing an outdated and inadequate existing wastewater treatment facility. The project was amended to increase available funding to $3,204,150 from a total project cost of $2,831,150 in order to reflect cost overruns experienced due to the addition of chlorination equipment, and increased costs incurred by wet soil conditions during construction.

“Infrastructure investments such as the Woodstock project are essential in the protection of our precious environment and the health of Canadians,“ Savoy said. “The Government of Canada, through ACOA, has made a commitment to help address the infrastructure needs of New Brunswickers because we recognize that economic sustainability heavily relies on the strength of a community’s infrastructure.”

“Building strategic infrastructure is a key cornerstone of Greater Opportunity: New Brunswick’s Prosperity Plan. Today’s celebration is just another example of how well the plan is working,” said Alward. “Building strategic infrastructure includes ensuring safe drinking water and green municipal infrastructure are available to New Brunswickers, including the residents of Woodstock.”

“This was a project that was long overdue for the Town of Woodstock and we certainly appreciate both levels of government stepping to the plate enabling us to construct this very important piece of infrastructure,” said Wright. “When governments work together good things happen and this project will allow us to continue our growth.”

To date, 90 infrastructure projects have been approved and announced through the Canada-New Brunswick Infrastructure Program.

In New Brunswick, ACOA is responsible for the implementation of the Canada-New Brunswick Infrastructure Program, while the Department of the Environment and Local Government, in conjunction with the Regional Development Corporation, are the provincial jurisdictions responsible for the implementation of the agreement. Each of the three funding partners will contribute one third of the eligible costs of the projects.

More information on the Canada – New Brunswick Infrastructure Program is available online at the following sites: www.infrastructurecanada.gc.ca; www.gnb.ca/elg- egl/0376/0001/index-e.asp

For additional information contact:

Valérie Poulin
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Joseph McGuire
Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
(613) 941-7241

Paul C. J. LeBlanc 
Senior Communications Officer 
ACOA New Brunswick
(506) 452-3310

Marie-Josée Groulx
Director of Communications and Educational Services
Environment and Local Government
(506) 457-7202