By Erika Chorostil

Year in Review

Brazeau County ‘turning the corner’ after more hurdles overcome in 2020

Jan 5, 2021 | 1:25 PM

2020 was a challenging year for many, and Brazeau County dealt with its fair share of blows.

The COVID-19 pandemic hit Alberta and the rest of Canada hard, but it was among a few challenges that Brazeau County faced in the year.

Reeve Bart Guyon says the municipality has been facing ongoing struggles with the oil and gas industry for a while now, and then in 2020, they dealt with the province’s announcement that rural municipalities would help pay policing costs, as well as the proposed changes to the oil and gas assessment model review, on top of the pandemic.

“Five years ago when the oil patch crashed, that was a hit on this community,” says Guyon. “The lack of pipelines, that was a hit on this community. The Bighorn proposal that could have destroyed this community was a hit, and then there’s things like policing costs that have been added by the province, and then the attack on our linear assessment. So it’s just a series of crises upon crises, and now we have the COVID crisis. Every time we start to get our head up dealing with one crisis, another whacks us on the head again.”

Guyon adds that the COVID-19 crisis was one of the larger challenges they have faced but it comes on the heels of those other issues. He says the pandemic has had a negative effect on the community in terms of jobs and businesses but is quick to point out that people in the community are resilient.

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“I think we have to keep our heads up. From what I’ve seen of the blood that runs through the veins of the people that have settled here, they’re quite resilient and they seem to be rising through the ashes,” Guyon says. “Businesses are starting to recover and people are starting to get some of their affairs in order.”

The Mayor also says he believes the County is “turning the corner” with other good things starting to come forward, such as more oil wells finally being drilled and new industries like hemp and deep-well geothermal being explored as possible opportunities in the community. He adds that the geothermal potential could utilize the existing oil and gas service sector in place and keep people employed within the community. The provincial government has already started changing regulations to allow for geothermal energy projects to start, which Guyon says is “exciting” and gives him hope the industry could make an impact in Brazeau County.

Guyon says, in spite of the challenges faced in 2020, he is also proud of the way Brazeau County council staff has handled the situations. He says they have tried to minimize the damage, such as keeping in place the 30 percent tax reduction that Brazeau County did five years ago, reducing “red tape” to help residents and businesses develop, and reducing fees. He also credits the County’s good working relationship with the Town of Drayton Valley in helping to get projects done and helping citizens recover.

“Overall, combined communities, both Drayton Valley and the County have survived significant storms…It’s been hell-in-a-hand basket quite frankly dealing with all these crises, but we’re going to forge ahead,” Guyon states. “We’re going to continue to invest in water and wastewater and roads and do what we can to try and create jobs and stimulate the economy.”

Guyon adds the County has a “citizen-first philosophy,” meaning they want to leave more money in the pockets of their residents and help them “realize their dreams.”

“We do everything we can to try and help people and if we have to change things or fix things in our bylaws, we go out of our way to help the citizens, so they come first in our mind.”

Heading into 2021, Guyon says the County will work on finalizing a balanced budget come spring and will continue to focus on investing in infrastructure development and creating jobs.