Zone 3 of the Gibsons water system is no longer drawing from the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) supply.
A new $1.2-million pump station and chlorinator on Goddard Road in upper Gibsons was commissioned last week with no leaks or other issues identified, and the Town’s Parkland Reservoir is now filled with only water from the Gibsons Aquifer.
The Town marked the official switchover with a small ceremony at the pump house Aug. 4 attended by staff and council members, MLA Nicholas Simons and MP Patrick Weiler, and representatives of the other local governments including SCRD chair Lori Pratt.
“For the first time in our history we are supplying all the Town of Gibsons’ water needs from the Gibsons Aquifer – the town’s most important natural asset,” Mayor Bill Beamish said. “This is also a significant day for the Sunshine Coast, which reflects the expressed intent by local governments to collaborate on ensuring a reliable water supply for our region.”
Beamish credited Gibsons residents with efforts to reduce water consumption in recent years which, along with metering, have resulted in a 54 per cent reduction since 2009.
“Our ability to meet this objective is only made possible by [those] efforts,” he said.
The SCRD and Gibsons water systems remain interconnected in Zone 3 and the Town may still need to use SCRD water at times of extremely high demand, during emergencies, or to ensure an adequate supply to fight a fire.
Pratt joked that as the representative of the SCRD, “the local government that catches the most grief about water,” she was pleased to be there to thank the Town.
“As we look at Stage 3 happening for regional water users [Aug. 8], we’re really excited to see Gibsons taking a little bit of the pressure off of the rest of the regional system,” Pratt said.
It has been Town policy in recent years to follow the SCRD’s lead on water restrictions in Zone 3, and that’s likely to continue in the short term although the Town had not announced as of Aug. 4 whether Zone 3 would go to Stage 3 restrictions on the 8th.
The Town will also have to continue chlorination for Zone 3, even though other areas served by the aquifer do not require it, because some SCRD water may still be used and Vancouver Coastal Health will not allow the Town to mix the chlorinated SCRD supply with unchlorinated water.
As well as funding the pump station on Goddard Road, the Town is also spending around $1.3 million on watermain upgrades, which will include the ones needed for the Zone 3 project, and about $729,000 on a new well and pump station on Oceanmount Lane.
In all, the Town is funding about $3.3 million in water infrastructure spending through borrowing authorized in 2019.
The Town anticipates saving up to $90,000 per year by not having to buy bulk water from the SCRD.
