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Show H telephone call with Environmental protection Agency (EPA) officials jives new hope that the Valley-wide jester lagoons will be completed by despite the walk off of the atractor. In the telephone call with the Ashley ' Valley Sewer Management Board late Hiesday, EPA officials confirmed the jctthata letter was being sent to allow 'c ihe unfinished lagoon sites to be rebid 3 to another contractor. !: Construction at the sewer lagoon site !" came to a stand still Nov. 12 as the if contractor Van Staveren Construction jminated his contract and walked off ie project. Hie reason for Van Staveren's termination ter-mination of the contract was its con- s: cern that the Sewer Management Board would not have the money to pay for the completion of the project. Representatives of the Sewer Board met with State Environmental Health officials and representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, regional office in Denver, to show proof that the board has adequate funds available to complete the project. The letter, which will be dated Dec. 15 according to the telephone confirmation, con-firmation, will answer the sewer management board's request that state and federal officials will allow the sewer management board to negotiate completion of the contract with other contractors in the area. According to Russ Vernon, project engineer, Van Staveren left the project 80 percent complete with not a single pond entirely finished. "We are going to have to have the lagoons pretty much complete before they (EPA) will allow sewage to be dumped into them," Vernon said. "With a good contractor and warm weather, that possibly will be by next spring," Vernon said. Engineer estimates of bids for what is left to complete on the sewer lagoon project are from $1.2 to $1.5 million. Meanwhile those who have already connected to the new sewer project are utilizing the Vernal City disposal plant which is at capacity. Approval of the sewer lagoons from EPA is required before they can be used because EPA is paying 89 percent of the cost of the project. |