Upgrades to the Petrolia Water Treatment Plant in Bright's Grove are complete at a cost of $8.1 million.
A joint application to the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF) by the Town of Petrolia, Dawn-Euphemia, Enniskillen and Oil Springs was approved in 2018.
Petrolia Mayor Brad Loosley said it was the second-largest grant they've ever received, second only to a $21.1 million grant received to upgrade the town's Wastewater Treatment Plant.
"It was great to have the municipalities work together to get improvements done," said Loosley. "The beauty is, we actually budgeted $1 million and then the province committed the other $7.4 million toward that project, which is great for the Town of Petrolia and those other municipalities that signed the application."
Loosley said providing safe drinking water is paramount and the upgrades, which included new pumps, a clear well and other improvements, will allow for future expansion of the service.
"It sets us up for a number of years. Our next big project that we're working on will be a new intake pipe that goes out into the lake and once that is replaced, then that plant is in good shape for years to come."
According to the province, it was the first time four municipalities were successful in obtaining OCIF funding for a joint project.