Study identifies $10.7 million in aging water and sewer infrastructure repairs in Baden and New Hamburg

By Galen Simmons

A comprehensive review of Wilmot Township’s underground infrastructure has identified 19 aging water and sanitary sewer mains in Baden and New Hamburg that will require either relining or full replacement in the coming years at an estimated cost of about $10.7 million.

Township manager of engineering Dot Roga and infrastructure GIS analyst Adele Keyes presented the findings of the infrastructure asset condition and investment needs study to Wilmot council’s committee of the whole March 2. The report outlines priority repair projects staff plan to incorporate into the township’s long-term asset management strategy and 10-year capital forecast.

“The township recognizes that a rehabilitation and replacement program is needed to address the aging infrastructure, particularly as it relates to water and sanitary mains and servicing,” Roga said. “In Wilmot, residences and businesses receive both water and sanitary in New Hamburg, Baden and Manheim.”

The study, Roga continued, focuses on Baden and New Hamburg because most of Mannheim’s water and sanitary infrastructure was installed after 1990 and is not currently considered a major concern. Stormwater infrastructure was also excluded from the review, with a separate stormwater master plan expected later this year.

Using a combination of engineering studies, historical records and field inspections, staff identified sections of aging pipe infrastructure that are either approaching or already beyond their expected lifespan. Some sanitary mains and watermains included in the study date back to about 1950, meaning they are now more than 70 years old.

The report combines several sources of data, including CCTV inspections of sanitary mains completed in 2023 and 2024, a road needs study conducted by Thurber Engineering in 2023, and a 2024 inflow and infiltration reduction and capacity management study that analyzed sewer capacity and wet-weather flows. Historical watermain break records and the age and material composition of pipes were also factored into the evaluation.

“There are many different materials used within Wilmot’s sanitary main and watermain systems, and these all have slightly varying lifespans,” Keyes said. “ … There are just over five kilometres of active watermain that the Township of Wilmot maintains that are made of either asbestos cement or cast iron that are approaching the end of their lifespans. Similarly, when we look at the active sanitary main system, there is just over 11 kilometres of sanitary mains that are also approaching the end of their useful life, and these are made of asbestos cement, concrete and vitrified clay.”

Once that information was compiled, staff mapped the infrastructure across the township and prioritized sections where aging pipes, deteriorating road conditions and high infiltration or inflow levels were all present. Areas with multiple risk factors were flagged as candidates for full reconstruction, while others could potentially be addressed through pipe-relining programs.

Relining aging pipes is considered a less disruptive and more cost-effective method of rehabilitation that can extend the lifespan of existing infrastructure by 50-75 years, while full reconstruction is required where pipes and surrounding road infrastructure are both failing.

On average, pipe relining can cost between $275 and $675 per metre for sanitary mains depending on pipe diameter, while relining watermains costs $1,000 per metre. For full road-reconstruction costs, sanitary main replacement can cost between $275 and $750 per metre, watermain replacement costs $1,000 per metre and road reconstruction costs $3,000 per metre minus the per-metre cost for both the sanitary and watermain replacement.

Among the problem areas identified in Baden are Brewery Street, Tannery Street, Foundry Street and Hastings Court, where aging sanitary pipes, watermain breaks and infiltration issues have been documented. On Brewery Street, for example, six sanitary main segments were identified as requiring urgent repair and two watermain breaks have occurred since 2017.

A number of streets in New Hamburg were also flagged for rehabilitation or reconstruction, including Hincks Street, Astor Crescent, Conestoga Road, Webster Street and Peel Street.

Hincks Street alone has experienced nine watermain breaks between 2003 and 2023, while Webster Street – where both water and sanitary infrastructure is about 59 years old – has seen 11 watermain breaks since 2003.

“For the watermain breaks, our number was relatively high,” Coun. Liallianne Dunstall said. “I would have thought that some of the larger urban centres would have been higher than ours’. Is that because our infrastructure is that much older?”

“I would surmise that yes, that is why,” Roga said. “The fact that we are looking at sanitary mains that are 70 years and older … and with the watermains too – 1950s watermains are going to break. They’re going to break and they’re going to continue to break. You can fix one, put pressure back to it, it will break somewhere else. That’s the problem we have to chase and solve.”

Other locations identified in the report include George Street, Park Place, Victoria Street, Waterloo Street, Seyler Street, Mill Street and Bleams Road East and West.

In total, the proposed projects include a mix of relining and reconstruction work affecting sanitary mains, watermains and some roadway segments. Estimated costs outlined in the report include about $6.5 million for watermain repairs, roughly $2 million for sanitary sewer work and approximately $2.2 million for associated road reconstruction projects.

Staff said addressing infiltration and inflow in the sanitary sewer network is particularly important because excess groundwater entering the system must be treated by the Region of Waterloo, creating unnecessary costs for the township.

“I would suggest that we are in the range of maybe $1 million or so that we are paying to the Region (of Waterloo) to treat clean (infiltration and inflow) water … if I recall correctly,” township director of infrastructure services Ken VanderWal said in response to a question from Coun. Kris Wilkinson.

If approved as part of future capital budgets, staff estimate it could take roughly five years to address the township’s most critical sanitary infrastructure backlog and up to 10 years to resolve the most urgent watermain issues using existing reserve funding levels.

The report was received for information by the committee of the whole and will help guide future capital planning and infrastructure investments across the township. Township staff will work with consultants from KPMG to incorporate the identified projects in the township’s long-term asset management strategy and 10-year capital forecast, which are currently in development.