The District of Invermere is taking steps to protect its two sources of water – Goldie Creek/Paddy Ryan Lakes and groundwater wells – in order to meet Interior Health permitting requirements.

Council Oct. 23 unanimously approved recommendations by Chief Administrative Officer Chris Prosser to approve the Groundwater Protection Strategy, the Goldie Creek Protection Plan and the Paddy Ryan Reservoir Protection Plan. In addition, with council approval, district staff will continue to communicate with affected landowners within the plan areas and implementation of actions outlined in the strategy begin immediately upon adoption.

“The implementation of water source protection plans provides a layer of protection to the public from water borne disease or contamination,” Prosser stated.

“In order to fulfill the requirements of our operating permits, the district is required to adopt and begin the implementation of source protection plans.  These plans have been in the development process since 2010 and have been reviewed internally and circulated in a referral process with affected agencies. The plans identify actions to ensure the safety of our water supply from further contamination,” he said, adding there will be costs borne by the district as a result.

“Once adopted, all three plans will require significant amount of staff and potentially consultant time to complete the recommended actions.  Ongoing monitoring and contingency planning will be required.  As well, open dialogue with the residents and property owners directly affected by the proposed recommendations is necessary on an ongoing basis.  It is anticipated that several staff members will be involved in the implementation process including the CAO, Director of Development Services, Building Inspector and Public Works staff.  It is estimated that annually, staff will be required to dedicate up to 150 hours per year in implementation and monitoring the source protection plans,” he explained.

“The proposed recommendation will require a financial consideration from council annually to continue implementation and monitoring.  Ongoing updating of data collection, public communication and monitoring will be required.  As well there are potential significant capital expenditures. From fencing the reservoir system to providing assistance to wellhead owners, council will be required to consider expenditures on an annually basis for the next five to 10 years.”

“The district’s long term water strategy recommends the continued use of two sources of water – Paddy Ryan Reservoir/Goldie Creek and the Athalmer Aquifer.  The development the plans and strategies will allow the district to maintain using a dual source system and potentially assist in deferring long term filtration costs,” Prosser continued.

“As the district grows, eventually Lake Windermere can be brought on line with raw water being pumped up to Paddy Ryan Reservoirs for treatment. This supply configuration will provide the district with the lowest total cost per m3 regardless of the population growth. Of course any reduction in water use will further delay the need to add additional source capacity.  The adoption of the source protection plans will also assist Interior Health in determining whether or not to grant a filtration deferral to the District.  The deferral of a filtration system on the Paddy Ryan System will delay the capital cost of approximately $10 to $15 million and annual operating costs in the range of $50,000,” Prosser related.

As for groundwater, the district has to take additional steps to ensure its continued safety and viability, he continued.

“In 2006-07, the district completed the well exploration process and determined to proceed with the development of a production well and associated reservoir and distribution system.  The overall system was completed in 2008 and came into service in late 2009.  One of the conditions applied to permit this source was the development of a groundwater protection plan.  In 2010, council authorized proceeding with the development of an Aquifer Protection Planning Process and through a pre-qualification process, hired Urban Systems and Golder and Associates to lead the process,” Prosser outlined.

“Over the past two years, the Community Planning Team has met six times to review progress and information collected through the development of the plan.  Exploratory drilling was under taken to determine the extent of the aquifer and to model the potential capacity and flow of the aquifer.  Through this process, the district has determined that another production well could be developed, when needed, within the public works yard,” he said.

Four priorities were identified in dealing with groundwater protection:

The possible presence of old or abandoned wells and/or wells not constructed to current well head protection standards, as such wells can provide a direct migration route to the shallow aquifer, i.e., to a depth closer to the deep aquifer; commercial and industrial land uses within the 100-day and 1-year zones of both wells; The presence of a major transportation corridor (Canadian Pacific Railway) close to the wellhead of PW#1; and storm water runoff in the Athalmer area where the presence of old and abandoned wells without proper seals is suspected.

As part of that, the district has to conduct a ‘walk-over’ of Athalmer to determine exactly how many wells are in the area.

“We have to reduce the number of straws in the melon,” Prosser told council. “Some (wells) are documented; some aren’t.”

Mayor Gerry Taft said the district’s concern isn’t the newer wells. “It’s the historic ones.”

Another challenge for the district will be adequately protecting Goldie Creek and the Paddy Ryan reservoir.

“The elephant in the room” is the Grizzly Ridge property, Prosser admitted. “Our goal is to secure it with fencing and reduce access to the reservoirs,” he said, adding they are not meant for swimming or paddling in.

However, additional fencing will take time because rights of way and easements have to be secured, Prosser told council.

Ian Cobb/e-KNOW

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