Ramsey Commissioners were unhappy with a proposal by the Manx Utilities Authority to permit a ‘catastrophic overflow’ from the foul sewerage system to discharge into the north east corner of the Old River basin in case of emergency.
The issue was discussed at September’s board meeting, held last week.
The system would only be used in the event of catastrophic failure of the Vollan Pumping Station.
The MUA said a number of resilience measures were in place to cope with such scenarios, including standby pumps and a standby generator.
However, if the emergency discharge still needed to be made, this emergency overflow would act as a relief outfall and limit the risk of local properties flooding with sewage.
Chief technical officer Steve Harrison said he was surprised they had come forward with this proposal as he thought there were other, more acceptable, options.
Commissioner Pat Ayres was vehemently opposed to it, saying it would negate any chance of the Old Harbour area being developed, while Wilf Young suggested the pipe could be laid down North Shore Road to the harbour beyond the new swimming pool.
It was agreed to ask MUA officers to attend a meeting to discuss the alternatives.