The Capital Region District’s proposed sewage treatment junket in Europe is not a done deal, says CRD board chair and Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins, who plans on presenting alternatives at Wednesday’s meeting (Sept. 13).
The CRD’s integrated resource management advisory committee does not have the power to approve the trip, originally proposed as a cheaper and more timely alternative to running a sewage pilot project. Both the environmental services committee and the CRD would also need to come on board with the idea, due to be discussed further this week.
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But Desjardins hopes she can provide a more palatable option.
“I’m going to come forward and try to provide an alternative to any travelling,” she said. “As board chair, I understand the reasoning [for the proposed tour], but I can’t participate in that at this point.”
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If approved, the tour would send three directors and two staffers to European cities in Germany, Belgium, Spain and France over a week in October, at an estimated cost of $8,500 per attendee. A North American tour was also discussed.
