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City to move water from Elizabeth Lake next week
City of Cranbrook crews will attempt to begin moving water out of Elizabeth Lake across Wattsville Road starting next week.
Instead of pumping, the city, through discussions with the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK), the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MOTI) and the Ministry of Environment (MOE), has decided on moving forward on setting up a siphoning system to attempt to move the water.
City staff has two– six inch diameter siphon pipes on order which are expected to be delivered early next week. Working with Cranbrook Fire & Emergency Services, crews will use the pumper truck to create the suction required to get the siphon flowing.
The siphoning of water follows the same principle as siphoning gas from a gas tank. One end of the pipe is lower than the other and when a vacuum is created, the liquid flows through the pipe from the higher end to the lower end. In this case, the high side is Elizabeth Lake, the high point is Wattsville Road and the low point is the stream channel on the north side of Wattsville Road.
The flow of water through the culvert under Highway 3 will determine the amount of water coming through the siphon system. If the Highway 3 culvert is at capacity, city crews will stop the siphoning to prevent any downstream flooding.
As a result of the siphons, residents and drivers are advised that Wattsville Road will be closed to traffic for the duration of the work. You are asked to please use an alternate route.
In order to try and ensure a better future for Elizabeth Lake and local residents, the City of Cranbrook has authorized Urban Systems to conduct a study of the Elizabeth Lake water issues and city downstream drainage systems. Staff notes it is extremely important to get the study completed as quickly as possible in order to provide time to complete any construction options that may need to be carried out in 2014.
City of Cranbrook
