---
title: "Conservatives commit $50 million for safe drinking water in Hedley and Osoyoos"
description: "Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson and Boundary-Similkameen candidate Donegal Wilson announced a $50 million commitment on October 19 to address arsenic contamination in Hedley and infrastructure problems in Osoyoos."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/bc/provincial-2026/news/donegal-wilson-conservative-drinking-water-hedley-osoyoos-2026"
last_updated: "2026-10-20T06:25:46.634Z"
---

The Conservative Party of BC announced on October 19, 2026 that leader Lorne Doerkson and [Donegal Wilson](/bc/provincial-2026/candidates/donegal-wilson), the party's candidate for Boundary-Similkameen, have committed $50 million to fix drinking water in two Okanagan communities if the Conservatives win the October 24 election.

The party's announcement says $5 million would go to Hedley for a new water source. The remaining $45 million would go to Osoyoos, including $43.3 million for the Kingfisher Water Treatment Plant and about $9 million for irrigation infrastructure upgrades. These figures are the party's own.

## The problem in Hedley

According to the Conservative Party's announcement, arsenic in Hedley's water has been above Health Canada's maximum acceptable concentration throughout the summer. The announcement says about 142 households are affected. Boiling water does not remove arsenic, so the party says the community needs a new water source.

## The problem in Osoyoos

The party says Osoyoos has elevated manganese in its groundwater. The announcement says the town has engineering work completed and a plan ready to build, but that without provincial funding it faces the risk of doubled or tripled water rates for residents.

The party quotes Wilson: "Safe drinking water should never depend on your postal code or the size of your tax base."

## What these figures mean

The $50 million total is the Conservative Party's own commitment, published on their website. The party has not published an independent cost review or a breakdown of how the $43.3 million Kingfisher Water Treatment Plant figure was calculated.

The Conservative Party also says the NDP has been in government for nine years without addressing Osoyoos's needs. That is the party's own characterization.

## What voters can do

[Lorne Doerkson](/bc/provincial-2026/candidates/lorne-doerkson) is the Conservative interim leader. The full list of candidates for Boundary-Similkameen is at [/bc/provincial-2026/races/mla/boundary-similkameen](/bc/provincial-2026/races/mla/boundary-similkameen). General voting day is October 24, 2026. Advance voting runs until October 21.

## Sitemap

See the full [sitemap](/bc/provincial-2026/sitemap.md) for all pages.