New facility may be key to boosting Saskatoon's water treatment capacity
Saskatoon's environment committee is set to consider how to increase the city's water treatment capacity — which may include a new facility.
"As the City of Saskatoon and surrounding region continue to grow, a strategy is required to increase the water treatment capacity to 450 million litres per day, which will provide safe and reliable drinking water for approximately 500,000 people," an administration report says.
The current plant has a treatment capacity of about 250 million litres per day.
The administration says the highest-ranking strategy would focus on improving reliability at the existing plant and the staged development of a second one.
If approved, the administration would, over the next two years, explore funding opportunities with federal and provincial programs; work with the Water Security Agency on construction permitting and operational requirements; evaluate distribution and reservoir storage requirements; and plan a contracting strategy.
The report says per capita water consumption has dropped over the past 10 years due in part to an inclining-block rate structure for residential properties, but that's being offset by growing commercial water demand, including food industries.
“Despite many successful water conservation efforts, as well as maintenance and upgrades over the years, it is unrealistic to depend on our 116-year-old Water Treatment Plant to keep up with future demand,” Pamela Hamoline, interim director of Saskatoon Water, said in a news release.
The committee is scheduled to meet Monday.
Correction
A previous version of this story incorrectly referenced the city's wastewater treatment plant, rather than the water treatment plant.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.