Sparwood council will spend $400,000 to find and stop leaks in the water system that are wasting more than half of Sparwood’s water.

At the regular council meeting on Tuesday, councillors were split about whether to spend 75 per cent of the water budget to try to fix the leaks that mean Sparwood is using twice the amount of water per person than the province’s average.

Danny Dwyer, Director of Planning and Information Services, said the taxpayer is currently suffering from paying for water that is just being wasted.

“We must get our water system under control or we will be faced with drilling a new well to support future growth,” he said.

“Leaks in the system also pose a threat to the safety of our water supply. Financial resources are being wasted on pumping and treatment of potable water that is pumped directly back into the ground.”

After a debate, council voted to replace the current leak detection and repair program with a new program at a cost of $400,000.

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