Calgarians saved a boatload of water, dropping water use to the lowest it has ever been as the final stage of stabilizing the water system is underway, the mayor said Canada Day Monday.
Mayor Jyoti Gondek, sporting a Canada sweater to commemorate the holiday, says Calgarians used 425 million litres of water on Sunday, 15 million litres less than the previous low of 440 million litres.
“I’m grateful to be part of a city where we understand the value of compassion and the strength of banding together,” she said.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for digging a little bit deeper and getting those water savings up.”
The city has entered the stabilization phase after AHS gave it the all-clear after testing the water supply. This phase requires the opening of valves to connect the feedermain with the rest of the city’s water system, which is over 5,000 kilometres in size.
It also presents the city with the “greatest risk” as leaks and breaks can happen, the mayor said, which is why crews are working cautiously as it releases valves and turns on pumps.
“If we go too fast, we could overstress the system,” she said.
“That’s why we’re being so incredibly cautious, and we’re taking things very slowly because we are not finished yet, and we are certainly not out of the woods yet.”
City infrastructure manager Francois Bouchart said Sunday the stabilization process will take around three to five days and restrictions will ease slowly.
“With stabilization, assuming everything goes perfectly as we hope, then three to five days is still appropriate. During that time, we would start seeing a gradual easing of restrictions,” he said.
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Gondek also said the city received several complaints from the Parkland area about cloudy water, but clarified the water has been tested and deemed safe for consumption.
“Together with Alberta Health Services, we are comfortable with the chlorine levels in the water, meaning that the water is safe for consumption. We also noted that any cloudiness that was appearing at the Shaganappi Pump Station earlier yesterday (Sunday) started to clear later in the day,” she said.
“We are confident that this was a temporary condition.”
The mayor said Sunday that residents will notice hydrants being used to flush out water during the stabilization process and that it is a “necessary step in returning water back into the feedermain.”
The Parkdale neighbourhood will be the first area to see hydrants being used.
Since the pipe break on June 5, Calgarians have been asked to reduce their water use by 25 per cent as repairs are conducted to the main, which carries 60 per cent of the city’s water.
Those restrictions were extended after repair crews found and repaired another five spots in the pipe nearing failure.
Crews have been working hard to have the line running before the Calgary Stampede, begins July 5. The city said previously the restrictions would be all done by then.
The Stage 4 outdoor water restrictions remain in place along with the fire ban. Fines are now being handed out for non-compliance and the city says they have now fielded nearly 3,000 calls about water misuse.
City officials also confirmed that Canada Day fireworks will proceed from Stampede Park despite the fire ban.
Another update is expected at 2 p.m.
Tune into CityNews 660 for the latest on the city’s water restrictions.