Municipality of Sioux Lookout

HARD SERVICES AND UTILITIES

The Roads department is responsible for the daily upkeep and maintenance of municipal roads, sidewalks and signage while the Utilities Department looks after waste management, sewer and water treatment facilities.

Roads

The Sioux Lookout area has approximately 42 km of urban roads and lanes, as well as 39 km of rural roads. The urban sector roads are made up of approximately 16 km of asphalt, 19 km of surface treatment, two km of gravel roads and five km of gravel lanes. The rural sector roads have approximately 24 km of surface treated roads and 15 km of gravel roads.

Water/Sewer

Urban Sioux Lookout has an excellent system of Water and Sewage Treatment Plants, distribution systems, collection systems for sewer and potable water, and storm sewers.

The urban Sioux Lookout Sewage Treatment Plant was built in 1994, and is capable of handling 500,000 gallons of raw sewage each day. Sewage disposal in Hudson is by the use of septic fields that are privately owned and maintained by the landholder.

The Municipality pumps its water from Pelican Lake. The Water Treatment Plant, which began operation in 1999, has Zenon ultra-filtration membranes. Pelican Lake water is transformed into clear, clean water that is safe to drink.

The new system produces 5,200m3 (or 1.1 million gallons) of treated water per day. Currently, the Municipality produces on average, 500,000 to 600,000 gallons of treated water a day, depending on the season. The water is pumped from Pelican Lake where the colour is removed, along with any Cryptosporidium, through ultra-filtration. Chlorine and fluorine are then added to the water. The new plant is a computerized "state of the art" water treatment plant that supplies urban Sioux Lookout with the cleanest drinking water possible.

Hudson began operation of a new water treatment plant in 2008 and provides excellent drinking water to the 400 residents of that community. The water is derived from Lost Lake.

Solid Waste Management

Currently, the Municipality operates one landfill site on Alcona Drive. Refuse is collected in urban and most of rural Sioux Lookout using a bag-tag system. Dump hours are available to allow residents to haul their own refuse to the landfill site.

The implementation of a recycling program has been very successful with approximately 3,000 yd3 being recycled every year.

UTILITIES

Fuel Oil

Fuel oil is available from two suppliers, Esso and Petro‑Canada, within the community. Each supplies in bulk: diesel fuel, heating oil and automobile fuel, primarily to retail distributors. The demand for home heating oil is consistent with homeowners using wood/oil and converting to electric. Aviation fuel is available at Esso as well as at the Sioux Lookout Airport.

Hydro

Sioux Lookout Hydro Inc. has been operating since 1939, serving the entire Municipality of Sioux Lookout.

Sioux Lookout Hydro operates with a staff of seven, under the direction of five Directors, consisting of two Councillors and three members of the public who are appointed by Council.