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Dear Rose Valley Water Service Area Customers,
We are reaching out to provide an update on: Rose Valley Reservoir source water improvements, which are planned for later this year; our plans to continue the needed 2025 Watermain Flushing Program; our ongoing system-wide monitoring; and our commitment to customer service.
This update covers the period from Nov. 29 to Feb. 9 and was scheduled to follow staff’s quarterly report to Council at the Feb. 11 Regular Meeting. You may also watch the webcast archive and read staff’s report to Council. Please note, we had considered delaying this update, in respect of the situation with the Hudson Road watermain break, but we also felt this information was important to provide in a timely manner. We thank you for your understanding.
For information regarding the emergency watermain break on Hudson Road, which occurred overnight Feb. 10 – 11, and the resulting need for repairs, the area-specific temporary water service outage, the isolated precautionary boil water notice within the affected area, and the precaution for parents who are mixing formula for infants, please go to westkelownacity.ca/news where we are providing separate updates.
The Rose Valley Water Service Area (RVWSA) Winter 2025 Update includes:
- Source water conditions and improvements
- Continued monitoring, sampling, testing and system flushing
- Our commitment to customer service
- Around the home and returning from vacation
Source water conditions and improvements
Source water improvements will help mitigate conditions in Rose Valley Reservoir, which is experiencing increasing challenges due to climate change and wildfires. Improvements will also help mitigate algae growth and dissolved manganese in water. Improvements will also help with taste and odors in drinking water, although they may still fluctuate in the long term.
Source water improvements, approved at $2.5 million, will be completed in phases, starting with the installation of a potassium permanganate system, which is scheduled to be completed in late spring or early summer 2025, before dissolved manganese levels in the source water may start to slightly rise. The aeration system is scheduled to be installed in Spring 2026 or sooner, if possible.
The provincial government is planning to replant around the reservoir in 2026. Longer-term, the intake screen will also need to be replaced. These projects are not included in the $2.5 million.
Potassium permanganate system
Potassium permanganate oxidizes dissolved manganese in water. If manganese remains suspended in its mineral form as it enters the plant, filters cannot remove it, and it will enter the distribution system. Otherwise, chlorine, the last stage of treatment at the plant, will oxidize the dissolved manganese and it can create an aesthetically displeasing brownish color in drinking water. The potassium permanganate dosing system will measure dissolved manganese levels and will communicate with the plant, where operators can review and adjust dosing levels.
As ice starts to melt off the reservoir in March, manganese levels may start to temporarily rise and staff will continue to monitor. The permanent potassium permanganate system will not be installed by March. However, staff can turn on an existing chlorine pre-dosing system very quickly, if needed.
Aeration
City staff, engineering consultants at AECOM and water biology experts at Larratt Aquatic are developing the aeration improvements’ preliminary design, which is scheduled to be completed in late 2025 or early 2026. Installation is expected in spring 2026. Aeration will help oxygenate the water (please see illustration), which reduces algae and dissolved manganese in the reservoir. The aeration solidifies manganese in its mineral particle form causing it to descent to the reservoir bottom, and not enter the outflow pipe and downward to the plant.
Replanting around the reservoir
At the Nov. 26 Regular Council Meeting, Larratt Aquatic highlighted the critical need to replant around the reservoir to reestablish a natural filter that will help improve water quality. The Government of B.C. plans to replant around the reservoir beginning in early 2026. This purposeful timeline will allow for some natural regeneration to occur first, to prevent overplanting and help maintain the delicate ecosystem balance around the reservoir.
Intake screen replacement
The existing intake screen needs replacement because it no longer provides the appropriate prevention of smaller particles from entering the treatment plant. While this is not an immediate concern, as the plant’s filters can handle this organic matter, it will be best for the plant, in the longer term, if the intake screen is replaced. Intake screen replacement is not within the current scope of improvements that are slated for 2025 and 2026 and will need to be part of future budget considerations.
Continued monitoring, sampling, testing and system flushing
Since our last update on Nov. 26, the City has consistently delivered safe water from the Rose Valley Water Treatment Plant that meets and exceeds federal and provincial drinking water guidelines, as indicated through our ongoing monitoring, sampling and testing at the plant and key locations throughout the system.The City has not had to issue any system-wide quality advisories for treated drinking water. If ever federal and provincial drinking water guidelines are not met, the City, in consultation with Interior Health, will issue the required notification to residents.
Precautionary water quality advisories have been issued on a zone-by-zone basis, for watermain flushing as it has progressed in the distribution system, as part of our maintenance program. This information is regularly communicated to customers through the City’s e-notification system to subscribers and the media, posted on the City’s homepage and water quality webpage at westkelownacity.ca/waterquality and posted on social media. Flushing has been paused due to cold weather and is scheduled to resume later this year, when temperatures are consistently above freezing. The City will announce the 2025 flushing schedule as soon as it is confirmed in the spring.Residents should expect for these precautionary, flushing-related advisories to continue in 2025.
Unlike flushing activities, which are planned, unanticipated changes in water velocity can occur within the distribution system’s pipes due to watermain breaks, unauthorized hydrant use and firefighting, which can cause short periods of turbidity in localized areas of the system. These occurrences cause higher flows that stir up accumulated sediment in the pipes. This is expected for a water system of this age, which had no water treatment plant for decades. However, over time, as treated water enters the system and flushing efforts continue, discoloration occurrences will progressively subside.
If you notice temporary water discoloration:
- Run your cold tap for a few minutes until clear.
- As a best practice, do to not consume discolored/turbid water.
- If after 10 minutes the water from the cold tap does not run clear, please contact us and our operators will assist you. By remaining in direct contact with us, we can investigate and resolve these matters sooner and provide more consistent water clarity.
We acknowledge that discoloration is frustrating. We are striving to provide consistent water clarity.
Isolated discoloration in January and direct communication with affected residents
A few Rose Valley Water Service Area residents notified us of brief, isolated discolored water occurrences in early January, thank you. Public Works Utilities staff were able to quickly investigate and resolve these instances with the help of our customers.
On Jan. 2, crews completed a planned repair on Concord Road. Repairs can cause high velocity water to move through nearby pipes and stir up accumulated sediment. Shortly after the repair was completed, staff received concerns in the adjacent Guidi Road, Ourtoland Road, and Trevor Drive areas. Discoloration cleared as soon as the turbid water was flushed from the system. Please note, a similar occurrence is occurring related to the emergency watermain break that occurred overnight Feb. 10 –11 on Hudson Road and the required repairs. For more information on what’s happening on Hudson Road, how to clear any related discoloration, which residences have been specifically placed on a precautionary boil water notice, and more developing information, visit westkelowncity.ca/news.
On Jan. 8 staff received concerns about discolored water from residents living on Teal and Stevenson Roads, immediately south of Anders Road and east of Boucherie Road. Thanks to residents contacting us, staff were able to test while the turbidity was present and assist in clearing the water. The water cleared within 10 minutes of running the cold tap. The clear water was also tested. The bacteriological testing of the turbid water indicated no e. Coli, coliform or other bacteria. The metal test indicated manganese was present in the discolored water. Manganese levels were below aesthetic objectives in the clear water that was tested. Residents were directly informed of these results. The City consulted with Interior Health and no water quality advisory was required, because manganese is a concern with long term exposure, not a brief occurrence. The manganese level was briefly 0.663mg/L. The maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) is .12mg/L and is a concern only if the exceedance is long term or if parents are mixing formula. In keeping with advice that new parents receive from their healthcare providers, we would like to reiterate that discolored water should not be used; please follow recommendations from your healthcare provider, particularly when reconstituting formula for infants.
Gastrointestinal illness
Members of the public have reached out to the City and Interior Health reporting gastrointestinal illness. These concerns have not been linked to drinking water in the Rose Valley Water Service area. Tests results indicate nothing that would pose a risk to the public getting sick from the drinking water.
If a positive test occurs, the City will work with Interior Health to notify customers and issue the required water quality advisory.
If you experience gastrointestinal illness, please report it to your healthcare provider or public health so they can assist you and your family and work with you to determine cause, remedy and prevention.
Additional services being provided to customers
Staff are continuing to enhance communication and customer service and ensure transparency:- In addition to this update, the City will provide regular updates to customers approximately once a month and updates to Council each quarter.
- 2023 and 2024 water data have been added to the City’s website. For 2025 and beyond, data will be posted monthly. Visit westkelownacity.ca/waterquality to view the data.
- We are here to help! We will keep in direct contact with customers who reach out to us about concerns with color, odor and taste of drinking water.
- Monitoring, sampling and testing will continue at the plant and at key locations in the system.
- If testing shows water does not meet drinking water quality standards, we will work with Interior Health to notify customers; remain signed up at westkelownacity.ca/subscribe.
Please contact us directly if you experience discoloration, which may occur from an unanticipated event causing high velocity flow in pipes, such as a watermain break, unauthorized hydrant uses or firefighting. Do to not consume discolored/turbid water. Run the tap until clear.
As a water purveyor, the City meets strict federal and provincial drinking water standards as a requirement of our licence to operate and provide service to you. These are incredibly high standards, to which municipalities and health authorities must adhere.
Around the home and returning from vacation
If you experience odor or discoloration from your taps:- Water taps: Run the cold tap until clear to flush water lines.
- Appliances: As you run the dishwasher, washing machine, etc. they will flush away stagnate water.
- Returning from vacation: If you’ve been away from your property, run the cold water tap for a few minutes as part of your returning home routine.
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