CBS council given big picture of Long Pond breakwater costs

By Craig Westcott/February 10, 2023

CBS council has been given the big picture view of what it will take to keep the Long Pond breakwater safe from climate change and historic storms in the future and it comes with a significant price tag – some $15.5 million.

The figure is contained in the Long Pond Breakwater Coastal Assessment Report which council is making available for public viewing. And while council adopted the report at its public meeting on Tuesday, there is no guarantee, the Town will accept all the recommendations of the report, or act on all of them right away.

In the meantime, council has also awarded a tender worth $54,000, plus HST to RJG Construction to provide some maintenance work on a part of the structure that is deteriorating.

Ward 3 councillor Gerard Tilley introduced both the report and the maintenace tender and offered some background on how it all came about.

“In 2016 the Government of Canada divested to the Town a parcel of land that included portions of the Long Pond breakwater,” said Tilley. “It also provided $1.6 million in cash as well as revenue from longer term water lot leases with private residents. The Town assumed ownership of the breakwater as well as the cost of any future repairs or upgrades that the Town decided to do.”

Then, in January 2020, came Snowmageddon, a record-breaking storm that caused extensive damage to the breakwater, washing away some 200 metres of it. The Town used a Provincial disaster relief fund to conduct emergency repairs.

The problem with that though, Tilley explained, was that the Provincial money could only be used to bring the breakwater back to its original design. There was no allowance to make improvements.

“A year later, in January 2021, another storm surge, much smaller than what had occurred during Snowmageddon, resulted in the breakwater breaching a second time,” Tilley said. “Emergency repairs were again completed, this time under an enhanced design under the guidance of an experienced consultant. These repairs were not intended to be permanent as the Town realized a comprehensive effort would be required to determine a more robust, long-term solution.”

To figure out that solution, the Town called for proposals and awarded a contract to CBCL Limited, a consulting engineering firm, to undertake a coastal assessment report of the area around the breakwater. The study included a look at the two previous big storm surges and the damage they inflicted, and a proposed solution that would make the breakwater withstand sea level rises caused by climate change and any other one in 100 year storm that might hit.

In the report adopted Tuesday, CBCL says the repairs done after the 2021 storm weren’t enough to restore the breakwater to an acceptable standard for the long term and a new design is warranted for specific parts of the structure.

But it’s not all bad news.

“The review indicated that since the repair enhancements were completed in 2021, there have been a total of 22 storm events of a similar nature to the 2021 storm surge that have caused no damage to the repaired or enhanced sections,” Tilley noted. “The review advised that with the present armour stone reinforcement, the risk of breaching is considerably reduced.”

CBCL is recommending a geotechnical investigation of the breakwater and inspection of its various structures, as well as a review of environmental and regulatory requirements to govern future construction work. The company also provided an advanced breakwater design and costing to build a structure that will withstand a storm stronger than Snowmageddon.

Tilley said council is focusing on the report’s “short term recommendations” and has already submitted funding applications to other levels of government to do some of the work.

“Our council continues to closely monitor the breakwater,” Tilley said. “While the temporary armour stone that has been installed offers an enhanced level of protection, areas of the breakwater adjacent to the armour stone continue to deteriorate… It is likely that additional maintenance and repairs will be required while planning for a more permanent solution continues.”

The total expenditures on repairs to date have been some $3,155,161 of which $811,225 have been offset through funding from other levels of government. 

“It is evident that climate change and evolving weather patterns are continuing to negatively impact our coastlines and communities,” Tilley said. “Council has asked staff to review our programs and policies to ensure we are properly considering the realities of climate change in our operations.”

While council has adopted the reported, Tilley cautioned, the Town is not bound by all of the recommendations in it. “But we will certainly heed the recommendations and do what we can to make this breakwater safe for everyone,” he said.

Councillor-at-large Joshua Barrett said CBCL did a great job. “I think that will pay dividends for us,” he said. 

Barrett noted that if council followed through on all the recommendations, the price tag would be fairly costly.

“As councillor Tilley has mentioned, we’ve already put $3.1 million on this initiative and are continuing to explore options,” Barrett said. “This is an important investment, but it’s going to take a number of years if we want to follow through with it. But I’m glad we have this out there and we can start moving forward on this front.”

Mayor Darrin Bent said having the report takes “all the guessing and conjecture out of it. It gives us a view of what’s really there, what’s happening and what could happen. And it gives us a framework of the things that we need to consider as time goes on. And it allows us to set some targets and move forward with ensuring this asset is protected for the long term.”

Bent said Town staff will analyze the report, which will also be useful for financial planning.