Residents urged to clear catch basins

REGINA – With the warmer temperatures sticking around this week, so too is the melt, and the city wants residents to chip in with the cleanup.

“We’re really encouraging home owners to get out and clean off the top of their catch basin,” said Helene Henning-Hill, manager of sewer and drainage operations.

Debris and ice have blocked off many of the city’s 22,000 catch basins, resulting in numerous miniature ponds encroaching on roads and sidewalks.

Pedestrians can get splashed by cars driving over the ponds, and the water can also seep into nearby basements.

“If it’s just a little bit of ice, maybe take a spade and poke at it to start the water to flow. Even two or three little tiny holes, you’d be amazed at how quick that catch basin starts to take on water,” said Henning-Hill, adding that a subsequent stream of water flow will increase the size of the openings further.

She said that while city crews are clearing catch basins, the department’s budget doesn’t allow them to clear each one.

“This is a means of residents helping the city and, therefore, impacting their own tax dollars. We don’t have to increase our crew sizes just to clear off catch basins during spring melt,” said Henning-Hill.

Crews can clear basins when requested through telephone (306-777-7000) or the city’s online request form, though she cautioned that such requests should only be made for issues of public safety, property damage, and the like.

Curious to see the locations of every catch basin in Regina? The city has a map for that.