Photo: Town of Oliver

The canal where it goes underground near Gallagher Lake

The Town of Oliver is applying to the federal government for a $20 million grant to fund much-needed repairs to its irrigation canal.

Council agreed Monday to submit an application to Ottawa’s Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund, the latest effort to secure funding to re-route the canal away from a rockfall prone area near Gallagher Lake.

The municipality has been searching for funding for the project since a rockslide in 2016 damaged the canal, which brings water to 1,400 hectares of farmland along its 17.4 kilometre route between Vaseux Lake and Hester Creek.

The provincial government has already promised $5 million for the $11-million plan, but the federal government has yet to come to the table.

Previous mayor Ron Hovanes took the case to Ottawa in October, supported by MP Richard Cannings.

The federal government indicated there was no funding mechanism to pay for a project of such size and urged the town to expand the scope of the project.

To reach the $20 million threshold required to be considered under the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund, the Town of Oliver has included $5.8 million in general system-wide repairs and $1.5 million to install caps on the canal at Hester and Tinhorn Creek to prevent blockages in the event of debris flows like in the previous two years.

If Ottawa approves the $20 million plan, Oliver would be on the hook for $6.3 million, something that worried some councillors.

Water coun. Rick Machial lamented the lack of insight staff provided on how a $6.3 million loan would impact the water system.

“That’s a lot of money to burden our town,” he said, asking staff to have the town's incoming CFO crunch the numbers and get back to them.

A consultant's report also suggested two other cheaper scenarios, however in both cases “contingency funds” were artificially padded to meet the $20 million threshold, which could jeopardize the whole application.

Chief administrative officer Cathy Cowan said the municipality could probably afford to borrow $2-3 million for the project, something that may require electorate approval through referendum.

She said the federal government has been keen on having the farmers using the system contribute to the project, despite it being a publicly owned system.

With the clock ticking and the grant application due at the end of January, councillors agreed to submit an application for the full $20 million, with the understanding that Oliver would have no obligation to accept the money in the event that additional funding cannot be secured.