Chatham-Kent approves excavating a downtown block of Wheatley to look for possible gas wells
The excavation is planned for September
Nearly three years after an explosion rocked the downtown core of Wheatley, Ont., the local council has unanimously approved excavating part of the downtown to look for more gas wells.
Chatham-Kent council voted Monday evening to excavate an entire block to confirm or deny whether there are any more wells leaking gas.
Council also passed a bylaw that will regulate excavations in hazardous areas in the municipality, including this planned excavation of the downtown area.
Preparatory work will start right away, says Ryan Brown, Chatham-Kent's director of public works. The excavation itself is planned for early September and will take a few weeks.
ELM 360 Environmental Consulting Ltd., an Alberta-based company Brown says has worked on similar projects, will be the project's general contractor.
Theresa Watson of T.L. Watson and Associates will continue her role. She's been a key adviser to the municipality in the wake of the emergency, says a report detailing the plan tabled at Monday night's meeting.
The explosion happened on Aug. 26, 2021, when gas surfaced through an old water well in the region. The blast destroyed two buildings, injured 20 people and displaced 12 businesses and about 100 residents.
There are three known gas wells in the area where the explosion occurred. Nine buildings were demolished last week to make way for crews to search the area for more abandoned wells.
Right now, the municipality doesn't know what it might find underground at the site of the explosion, Brown says.
"We could dig up the whole site and find nothing," Brown told CBC Radio's Windsor Morning host Amy Dodge.
"Or the worst case scenario is we do find another well that's emitting gas. And we need to have all the equipment and personnel on site to get control of that well so that we can eliminate the hazard."
LISTEN: Chatham-Kent's director of public works Ryan Brown discusses excavation plan
If another well is found and it's leaking gas, what happens next will depend on the type of gas and the amount, Brown says.
"That may mean putting [the gas] through a scrubber, that may mean flaring it, and that may mean actually plugging the well with a drilling rig," said Brown.
More homes could also have to be evacuated on a short-term basis if a well is found, the report says.
The base cost for the project is about $2 million. If the excavation unearths hazardous gas, contingency costs for equipment and workers to be brought in 24/7 to deal with the hazard could increase the cost to about $6 million.
Last summer, the province announced $11 million more in the aftermath of the blast.
When asked in council if the province will supply more money in the future, Brown said no commitments have been made yet, but the province is aware of the proposed excavation costs.
WATCH: Couple still waiting for their home to be livable again after 2021 explosion
Two drilling rigs — a large one and a small one — will be on standby in case gas is discovered, says Brown.
For residents who might be anxious about more work being done at the site, Brown says the work is necessary to restore the part of Wheatley lost in the explosion. He also says the municipality is working with the "best experts we can find."
"We know that the community has been through a lot. But we know that they're also working to put an end to this and move forward with downtown Wheatley and kind of reimagine what it could be," said Brown.
Communication of the operational and safety plans to the public will come in the following weeks, council says.
The municipality says it will hold an information event later this summer, and individual property owners who need information will be contacted directly.
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With files from Windsor Morning.