Media Releases

Amherst to conduct storm water management study

The Town of Amherst is determined to figure out if anything can be done to prevent flooding similar to what occurred in February 2022.

Back then, the town experienced a day of flooding due to a heavy intense rainfall that combined with a rapid snowmelt, due to unseasonal warm temperatures, that resulted in numerous sections of town experiencing significant funding.

While several areas were affected, two areas of the town were notably impacted by the town. These were South Albion Street, near Industrial Park Drive, and the Donald Avenue-Ralston Place-Dickey Street area.

“In order to address and minimize the potential of future flooding in these areas a stormwater management study needs to be conducted,” Mayor David Kogon said. “We want to know what is the root cause of the flooding, what our options are to fix the issue and how much the work will cost.”

The town has budgeted $50,000 for the study, with $25,000 coming from the general operating budget and $25,000 from the province’s capital assistance program. The provincial funding approval was announced by the province on Aug. 26, 2022.

“We appreciate the assistance we are receiving from the province,” Kogon said. “It will hopefully help us find a solution so that we don’t experience the flooding we did last winter.”

While the study, which will be carried out in the near future, will help find the root cause of the flooding and recommend some solutions, the town has already taken some investigative steps, such as a video inspection carried out on the storm sewer in the area of Ralston Place. The inspection provided some good news in that it did not identify any sources of storm water infiltration or issues with the storm sewer that would have contributed to the flooding.

Work is also being carried out this summer to clear ditches in the area in order to remove any accumulated silt, debris and vegetation that may interfere with the proper flow of stormwater in the ditch.

Town crews are also attempting this summer identify obvious sources of stormwater inflow into the sanitary sewer, including a dye test to check for cross connections with storm and sanitary sewers.

The town is also investigating the cost and possibility of installing an inline check valve on the downstream end of the Ralston Place sanitary sewer. This may be a short-term solution to prevent the sewer from surging in a future intense rainfall event.