Metro Vancouver is now in the second phase of updating the regional Drinking Water Management Plan.
The plan sets out goals, strategies, and actions for Metro Vancouver and its member jurisdictions to help ensure the delivery of high-quality drinking water, the sustainable use of water and the efficient supply of water. It’s the overarching guiding document for the water utility, establishing priorities and setting the strategic direction for drinking water initiatives over the next 10 years.
Engagement on Phase 1, establishing draft guiding principles and goals, concluded in July 2024, which included gathering feedback from local First Nations, member jurisdictions, members of the public and others.
A recent report to Metro Vancouver’s Water Committee notes that Phase 2, developing the plan’s strategies and actions, is underway. Planning for engagement with local First Nations is also underway, while public engagement will follow in 2025.
“Since the last plan update in 2011, the Metro Vancouver region has been proactively addressing population growth, seismic events, and climate change. These efforts have focused on ensuring we can adapt and manage the supply and demand for drinking water in the face of these changes. By updating this plan, Metro Vancouver and its members can realign priorities and prepare to address current and upcoming challenges,” notes a summary report on the first phase engagement.
A Delta civic report this summer on the city’s drinking water quality notes that, in 2023, staff conducted approximately 1,266 water sample tests from the drinking water distribution system, which were obtained from 34 sampling stations distributed throughout Delta.
Detailed physical and chemical analysis were also performed on the artesian well water sourced from Watershed Park.
Based on the testing results from the samples taken, Delta’s drinking water met the provincial requirements as outlined in the BC Drinking Water Protection Regulation, the report notes.
Meanwhile, the City of Delta recently issued a request for bids for contractors with relevant knowledge and experience to clean and inspect the Watershed Park Reservoir, located at 11600 Kittson Parkway.
Watershed Park Reservoir is a partially in-ground concrete reservoir and, according to the city, there is around two-to-three centimetres of sediment that has accumulated at the bottom.
The contractor is to remove the sediment and residue that has accumulated on all surfaces inside and then conduct a thorough inspection to note any further repairs rehabilitation required, including root penetrations, corrosion and spalling.
The engineering department a few years ago undertook a project to introduce the water into the regular distribution system for part of the city to help offset the rising cost of purchasing water from Metro Vancouver.
The water is pumped from deep wells in Sunshine Hills into the 64 Avenue Reservoir and then distributed to the lowland area south of 64th Avenue. The system is relatively inexpensive to operate as it relies on gravity to supply the area south of 64th Avenue from the reservoir.
