The City of Calgary has lifted water restrictions after repairs to nine damaged sections of the Bearspaw South Feeder Main were completed.
The city made the announcement Thursday morning, a few days ahead of schedule, after the pipe was refilled with water and testing confirmed that the system was performing well.
“Calgary, you did it. We did it,” Mayor Jeromy Farkas said during a morning press conference.
“Together we reduced our water use, together we kept our system stable, and together we ensured our city could get through this frustrating shut down and get this work done.”
The restrictions were put in place on March 9 when the feeder main, which normally supplies about 60 per cent of Calgary’s water, was shut down for repairs.
On Dec. 30, the 50-year-old pipe suffered its second catastrophic failure in the last two years, which caused localized flooding and plunged the city into prolonged emergency water conservations measures.
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Since then, the city has had to rely on the much smaller Glenmore water plant to supply the bulk of the city’s water.
Over the last three weeks, the city has relied on the much smaller Glenmore Water Treatment Plant to supply the entirely of the city’s water supply.
Due to the strain on the system, officials set a daily water use threshold of 500 million litres — a threshold water use exceeded just five times over the last 24 days.
During that time, outdoor water use was prohibited, and Calgarians were asked to take shorter showers, limit laundry loads, and reduce toilet flushes.
“We had a number of large fires that used large amounts of water very quickly, we had additional water main breaks,” said the city’s infrastructure services general manager Michael Thompson.
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“We were able to respond to those emergencies and keep the water flowing to your taps.”
The City of Calgary says residents used 503 million litres of water on Wednesday — three million litres more than the city said was sustainable while water restrictions were in place.
Source: City of Calgary
The city said the lifting of water restrictions means recreation facilities can also return to normal operations, with hot tubs and kiddie pools being refilled and reopened as soon as they’re ready and safe to use.
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Traffic detours that were put in place along 16 Avenue Northwest and Sarcee Trail Northwest during the repairs are also expected to be removed by the weekend.
City crews encased the weakened segments of pipe in concrete, as well as replaced valves that were not fully operational before the dig sites were backfilled and paved.
“This is sort of your remote first aid when you’re in the bush… splinting things is the analogy I would use, until you’re able to go in and get a cast,” said UCalgary civil engineering professor Kerry Black.
“This is a temporary fix to try and make sure things are OK until we can do the full replacement.”
Water restrictions aren’t set to be reintroduced until the fall for crews to connect the replacement pipe to the city’s water system.
However, Thompson said emergency water restrictions will need to be imposed if an issue arises before then.
“This pipe could break again this summer,” Thompson said. “So we need people to be ready for that.
“We’re talking to our partners that are running large festivals and we’re talking to associations across the city to make sure everyone is aware of that.”
The Calgary Stampede confirmed it remains in close contact with city officials regarding water use, similar to Stampede 2024, which was held just weeks after repairs to the feeder main following its first failure.
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“We are prepared to support any water conservation efforts that may be required,” a Calgary Stampede spokesperson said in a statement. “We have plans in place to responsibly deliver The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth during these challenging times for our city.”
The focus is now shifting to the Bearspaw feeder main’s replacement project, with work currently underway at three sites in the city’s northwest.
The $381 million project is being fast-tracked to be complete by December with micro-tunnelling underway on the project’s first phase between the Shaganappi Pump Station and 73 Street NW on the west side of the Bow River.
The second phase of the project will run up 34 Avenue NW to 89 Street NW and will use a phased open cut method.
“It is a very busy summer for us,” Thompson said. “We will be working extremely hard on that replacement pipe to have that project completed by December of this year so that, once and for all, we can be comfortable as a community as we go forward and not have to worry about this terminally ill pipe.”
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