There are now 21 segments that need repair on the Bearspaw water feeder main in Calgary, and there will be 16 to 18 dig sites, according to the latest city update.

Even though there are additional repairs, up from the initial 16 identified in the latest tranche of work, the City of Calgary’s Infrastructure Services GM Michael Thompson said that they expect to get the work done by the end of September.

The segments that require repair are on 33 Avenue and 16 Avenue NW. There will also be two more repairs – one near Parkdale Boulevard and another near Crowchild Trail – done once the main repairs have been completed and water restrictions have been lifted.

This news comes after further review of the PipeDiver data, Thompson said.

“We know that this work will have impacts on the residents and businesses in the area,” he said.

“Over the coming days, our team will again be in the community reaching out to residents most impacted by construction along 33rd Avenue northwest.” 

Thompson said they would be connecting directly with affected residents, getting contact information and finding out if homeowners have any special requirements in their homes.

Crews will begin staging equipment at a green space at 83 Street and 33 Avenue NW. Materials, office trailers and other equipment required for repairs will be stored there. Citizens will also see pavement cutters out next week marking areas where the dig sites will happen.

The new five sites were added after the PipeDiver review as wire snaps were identified adjacent to areas that already needed urgent repairs, Thompson said.

“It may have had wire snaps on it, but not at a level that required urgent repairs now, but since we’re going to have the site opened up and be doing excavation and repair, we want to go in and reinforce those sites right now. We also found a few additional ones as we completed the thorough analysis of the data, and that’s how we got to the numbers we’ve shared today.”

Monitoring equipment to be added

While they do the work on the feeder main, they will be installing the new fibre optic monitoring system to the line, Thompson said.

“This will accurately identify the location of a wire snap and allow us to monitor the pipe’s health more closely,” he said.

“Crews will begin installing the fiber optic cable next week, so you may see them working around manholes with tripods and large reels of fiber optic cable as we prepare for the feeder main repair work and proceed with the installation of the fiber optic cable.”

This work will also require single-lane roadway closures in the area, Thompson said.

Nicole Newton, the City of Calgary’s manager of Natural Environment and Adaptation reiterated the importance of both the repair work and the need for Calgarians to do what they can to conserve water. She said getting these repairs done soon preserves Calgary’s water supply for the winter.

“Calgary relies on the Bow and Elbow Rivers for water, with the Glenmore reservoir serving as our water reserve during the fall and winter. When river flows are low, the Glenmore Reservoir needs to be sufficiently filled before winter to ensure we have enough water until spring,” Newton said.

“With the feeder main out of service, most of our water will come from the Glenmore reservoir. Completing repairs now allows the reservoir to refill before winter, preventing potential water shortages if the feeder main fill fails during low river flows.”

The Bearspaw water treatment plant is supplied by the Bow River, with the Glenmore reservoir being supplied primarily by the much smaller Elbow River.

Newton also echoed the message that’s been sent by the City of Calgary from the beginning of the ordeal. She said critical services could be impacted if Calgarians don’t cooperate with the request to cut home and business water use by 25 per cent.

“We understand that reducing your water use affects both your home and business, but sharing this responsibility and using less water is the best way to ensure safe, secure water supply for everyone,” she said.

Thompson did say that they do have to review the utilities in the area, but right now they believe that residents and businesses along or near 33 Avenue NW would continue to have water service during the month-long repairs.