Dredging will be done at Cow Creek as soon as the permits are ready.
Council directed staff to pay for minor dredging from the existing approved budget Monday, and also approved a capital budget of $300,000 for full dredging once additional permits are obtained.
Councillor Mike Stark said he supported the motion because the St. Clair Region Conservation Authority indicated last Friday that there were no external funding options available.
"In the late 1980s, Clearwater council did in fact dredge this particular creek, and it is the responsibility, in my view, of the municipality and as such I will support the dredging," said Stark.
The waterway, commonly known as Perch Creek, has been mostly blocked by a sand bar since December.
"It's much easier to get a permit to do this minor dredging, just to move the material out of the creek, and then as we're working on the larger permit to get permission to then dredge and put the material back into the lake, that will take a few more months," Engineering and Operations General Manager David Jackson told council. "So, that's why we want to open it up right now for boating season, as we work through the longer term process."
Staff had originally estimated it would cost $750,000 to dredge the creek, in the area just west of St. John in the Wilderness Church in Bright's Grove.
But, the cost dropped significantly when environmental testing concluded the material was not contaminated and could be put back into the lake to nourish beaches along the shoreline.
It's hoped the first permit will be approved in early June and the initial work can be completed immediately, however it may have to be delayed until the fish spawning season is complete on July 15.
