Ontario Construction News staff writer
The City of Windsor will use federal funding for construction of a new retention treatment basin for the Lou Romano Water Reclamation Plant.
“For a community that has suffered two catastrophic floods, protecting our community from the damage of climate change has been my priority, and this federal investment to construct new retention basin capacity in Windsor will protect thousands of homes, businesses, and livelihoods here at home,” said Windsor MP Irek Kusmierczyk.
The Government of Canada is investing more than $32.7 million, and the City of Windsor is contributing more than $55.8 million.
The new basin will include a new pumping station and outfall sewer. Once complete, the new basin will act as a buffer during storm surges and provide emergency back-up service in case of catastrophic failure at the plant. This project is expected to offer improved protection from flooding to thousands of homes and help the City of Windsor better manage the impacts of severe storms.
“The construction of the retention treatment basin and a new pumping station will enhance the treatment abilities and greatly reduce the impacts of major storm events, including basement flooding, for nearly 62,000 homes, primarily those in South Windsor, Sandwich Towne and West Windsor, serviced by the Lou Romano Water Reclamation Plant,” Windsor mayor Drew Dikens said in a statement.r.
The Government of Canada’s funding for this project comes from the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund (DMAF), launched in 2018 as a $2 billion, 10-year program to help communities build the infrastructure they need to better withstand natural hazards such as floods, wildfires, earthquakes and droughts. Budget 2021 provided the DMAF with an additional $1.375 billion over 12 years.