SUN VALLEY WATER SYSTEM Annual Water Quality Report

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1 SUN VALLEY WATER SYSTEM March, Annual Water Quality Report Regional District of Okanagan - Similkameen Public Works System Acquisition and Operations In 2016, after initial discussions in 2014, the Sun Valley Irrigation District requested the Regional District of OkanaganSimilkameen (RDOS) provide budgetary numbers and details for transferring the ownership and operations of the Sun Valley water system to the RDOS. Upon approval of the RDOS s proposal by the SVID Board, the process for dissolving the Irrigation District was initiated with the Province. On January 1st, 2017 the RDOS Public Works department took over the operations of the Sun Valley water system from the previous operators. Entrance to Sun Valley Pump Station and Reservoir In November 2016, the Federal and Provincial Governments opened the Clean Water and Wastewater Fund (CWWF) grant program. The purpose of the funding was to support infrastructure projects in communities across the province that are undertaken and completed in 2017/2018. The Regional District submitted an application to add communications and alarming hardware to the Sun Valley Pump House and Reservoir. The grant program funds up to a maximum of eighty-three percent (83%) of the total eligible project costs with fifty percent (50%) contributed by the Government of Canada and thirty-three percent (33%) by the Province of British Columbia. The remaining costs would be recovered from user fees of the Sun Valley water system. In April 2017 that the grant funding was approved! The total budget for the upgrade is $44,000 and Sun Valley ratepayers will be required to pay $7,500. In addition to the improvements noted above, the mechanical systems, controls, and pumps currently being used are of the age that these components are becoming less reliable and require replacement. In November 2017, to address these issues, the RDOS Board of Directors chose to use Regionally Significant Project Gas Tax Funds for upgrades to the Sun Valley water system. Engineering work started immediately on the process of obtaining proposals from qualified companies to design and construct the required system upgrades. Construction is expected to begin in the Summer of 2018, and wrap up in the Fall/Winter of The available funding from the Regionally Significant Gas Tax Fund is $120,000 and will cover the full cost of the project (100% funding) therefore no contribution from the water system users is required.

2 2017 OPERATIONS A number of power outages and pump failures resulted in a number of water notifications being issued to Sun Valley residents in In the early hours of July 21 st, the utility electrical supply to the Sun Valley Pump Station was interrupted resulting in the loss of electrical power to the station. As a result, there was a loss of system pressure for approximately 4 hours. A Water Quality Advisory (WQA) was issued in response to this event. The bacteriological sample taken on July 21 st, resulted in Total Coliforms being detected. In September, two of the main distribution pumps encountered electrical and mechanical problems. As the irrigation season was at a close, it was decided that these pumps would be removed from service. With pending upgrades to the system, repairs were put on hold until further information was obtained regarding the future use of these pumps. On October 28 th, an extended power outage resulted in the loss of pressure and a Boil Water Notice (BWN) was issued for the system. Similar to the outage in July, the bacteriological sample taken of October 30 th resulted in Total Coliforms. In Sun Valley, the water storage reservoir is at the lowest point in the system, therefore pumps are required to pressurize the system. As a result, anytime that there is a power outage there will be a corresponding loss of pressure in the water distribution system. When there is a loss of pressure in a distribution system there is the potential for the contamination of the system, therefore a BWN is required. Contaminated water may enter the system from back syphoning of service lines. For example, a hose mistakenly left in a garden pond could drain the water in the pond back into the water system distribution piping when there is a loss of distribution pressure. Moving forward, any time there is a loss of system pressure (i.e. a electrical power outage) a Boil Water Notice will automatically be issued for the Sun Valley water system. In addition to the Total Coliforms detected after losses of system pressure, a number of routine bacteriological samples resulted in low level counts for Total Coliform in With the BWN remaining in effect from October, it was decided that the reservoir be clean and disinfected along with flushing of the distribution system. Flushing removes built up biofilms and sediments that commonly occur in water distribution systems, which under ideal conditions could result in bacteriological growth. The BWN was required as there would be an interruption in water service while the reservoir was drained and cleaned. The reservoir was cleaned and disinfected on November 9 th and the following day the distribution system was flushed with chlorinated water. Chlorine remained in the system for approximately 1 week. After confirming the system was free of chlorine, bacteriological samples were taken. These bacteriological samples were negative for Total Coliforms and the Interior Health Authority provided approval for the RDOS to rescind the Boil Water Notice on November 27 th. Electrical Room and Pump Room adjacent to Reservoir

3 Potable Water Sun Valley Well A variety of testing is carried out in the water system on a bi-weekly and annual basis. Annually, the RDOS submits a sample of the untreated well water to an accredited lab for full comprehensive potable water testing. This comprehensive test includes physical parameters (e.g. color, turbidity, temperature, UV transmittance), chemical parameters (e.g. hardness, total metals and nutrients) and bacteriological quality. Changes in these parameters may result in the need for water notifications for customers (i.e. Boil Water Notice or Water Quality Advisory) or the requirement for treatment processes to be implemented. In 2017, all of the tested parameters, with the exception of bacteriological quality, met the applicable potable water standards. Standards for Potable Water The British Columbia Drinking Water Protection Act (DWPA) and supporting Regulation along with the Federal Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality (GCDWQ) define parameters for potable water in BC. These include Aesthetic Objectives (AO) and Maximum Allowable Concentrations (MAC) for numerous water quality parameters. New Aluminum Hatch Certified Water Operators Sun Valley Groundwater Well Regional Water Bylaws and Water Restrictions As the RDOS acquires water systems, the associated bylaws have to be adopted by the RDOS. Over the years this has resulted in numerous water bylaws for the different water systems. These bylaws have both similarities and differences and most have become outdated. In 2017 with the aid of two Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB) Water Conservation and Quality Improvement Grants, the RDOS had a consulting company, specializing in in water sustainability, review and amalgamate all of the RDOS regulatory water bylaws into one Regional bylaw. The new Regional regulatory water bylaw will be applicable to all current and future RDOS owned and operated water systems. Additionally, a Regional Water Conservation Strategy was developed and approved. The Strategy provides a single approach to water efficiency in all RDOS owned and operated water systems. Concurrently, in order to protect the RDOS owned and operated water systems, the development of a Regional Cross Connection Control bylaw was started. The British Columbia Environmental Operators Certification Program (BC EOCP) is responsible for the classification of water systems in BC. The EOCP is also responsible for certification of all water system Operators. All RDOS Operators are certified through the BC EOCP. Operators may hold certification in the disciplines of Water Distribution and/or Water Treatment with 4 levels of certification achievable within each discipline. Annually, RDOS Operators attend courses and seminars and complete online training required to maintain and progress their levels of certification.

4 Coliform Counts Total Coliforms and E.coli are indicator organisms used to assess the bacteriological quality of the water. The Interior Health Authority s Role The Interior Health Authority s team of drinking water officers are responsible for providing oversight to ensure compliance and drinking water safety. IHA is consulted when there is a need for issuing a water notice such as a Boil Water Notice and upon rescinding of notices. IHA is responsible for issuing Permits to Operate to drinking water systems. The Interior Health Authority has three types of water notifications to inform users of negative impacts to water quality. Levels of Water System Notices Boil Water Notice (BWN): a notification to users of a system indicating that a health risk has been determined in the drinking water. A BWN is targeted to all users of a water system. Water Quality Advisory (WQA): a level of notification below a Boil Water Notice and is used in situations where the general public health threat is modest. A WQA typically has a specific demographic that it targets. Do Not Use Notice: is issued when there is an imminent risk to consuming the water or using the water for personal hygiene such as bathing and showering. Water Quality Monitoring in the Distribution System In 2017, a total of 36 water samples were drawn from the Sun Valley distribution system. Samples from the distribution system are analyzed by an accredited laboratory for Total Coliforms and Escherichia Coli. All samples drawn in 2017 had no detections for E.coli however, there was a total of 6 samples that were positive for Total Coliforms. In addition to the bacteriological samples, field tests are conducted for temperature, ph, conductivity and turbidity. Water System Notices July 21 st, Water Quality Advisory issued in response to loss of system pressure (power outage). Remained in effect until August 1st, October 28 th, Boil Water Notice issued in response to loss of system pressure. November 9 th /10 th, the above BWN remained in effect for the cleaning, inspection and disinfection of the reservoir. Remained in effect until November 27 th. Plans for 2018 The Regional District will continue working on the engineering, design and installation of the required upgrades to the Sun Valley system that will facilitate the delivery of a safer and more reliable supply of water to the community.

5 Water Conservation Water is a valuable resource that should be used wisely. By working together, to manage water as efficiently as possible in Regional District operations, private dwellings, agricultural operations, and commercial enterprises, the District can mitigate risk; ensuring that its services are resilient in the face of these challenges and sustainable into the future. To help achieve this goal, the RDOS employs residential watering restrictions. Each April, Sun Valley moves to Stage 1 watering restrictions to balance the demand of water, reduce the stress on the infrastructure, and ensure enough water for all users. By restricting outdoor sprinkling to specific watering days and times, the volume of water being used in the system is reduced as not all residents are using water at the same time. In an extended drought, RDOS Water Operators determine the need to move to more restrictive Stages was a cooler year with more rain than usual, but conserving water is still important. Consider it like adding to a water bank account, ready for a drought year. Outdoor landscape irrigation accounts for about 26% of potable water consumed. Insuring that all leaks and inefficiencies are fixed can substantially reduce consumption totals. The RDOS has many tools to help property owners to manage water on their landscapes, detect and fix leaks inside and outside the home and many water conservation techniques. Workshops are held on a variety of topics annually and advertised to Sun Valley residents. The RDOS web site has many videos, brochures and fact sheets to view or download. Water Conservation: Tips and tricks departments/public-works/ water-systems/water-conservation/ WaterTalk a compendium of water related information and videos Okanagan specific and globally relevant water-conservation/water-talk/ If you have specific questions on water use or conservation, contact: Zoe Kirk, RDOS Public Works Projects at zkirk@rdos.bc.ca or call Provincial Drought Levels It can be confusing when Provincial Drought Levels are circulated in the media and appear to contradict local Water Restriction Stages. They are two different rating systems. Drought levels are based on environmental flow needs in creeks and rivers. BC River s Forecast Centre monitor volumes of water and water levels in order to insure water levels are adequate to support fish as they move through their life cycle. Fish are indicators of the overall health of the creek ecosystem, especially in times of increasing water scarcity during a drought. The Province developed a system to rate Drought Levels, and the response actions required at each incremental stage. Regional Water Restrictions The RDOS owns or operates nine water systems. Each system has its own Water Use Bylaws tailored to the system and user base. Water or Sprinkling Restrictions relate to the capacity of each water system to provide potable water to users. Restrictions are required in times of heavy use or water scarcity and may not be at the same stage in all systems. Stages relate to the ability to provide the volume of water requested (balancing demand) and reducing stress on the infrastructure. The RDOS has undergone a consultation process to harmonize the restriction stages as much as possible in all nine systems.

6 Water Quality Complaints If you have a water quality complaint, concern, observe changes in your water or would like to request further information regarding any of the RDOS water systems please contact the following: Public Works Department RDOS Environmental Technologist Toll Free: Phone: info@rdos.bc.ca Water Connections During regular business hours water related emergencies, questions regarding applications for water service and water service turn on/off requests can be directed to the following: Public Works Department Administrative Assistant Toll Free: Phone: info@rdos.bc.ca Additional Resources RDOS Water System Home Page Interior Health Authority Drinking Water for Everyone Interior Health Authority Drinking Water Homepage default.aspx Federal Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality After-Hours Water Emergencies For all after-hours water related emergencies please call: Regional Dispatch Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen 101 Martin St, Penticton, BC V2A 5J9 T TF Web Site -