Airdrie Mayor Peter Brown joined his Calgary counterpart, Mayor Jyoti Gondek on Friday morning as Calgary's water usage yesterday surpassed, what Mayor Gondek said was the sustainable threshold.

"Since last Saturday, our water usage has been trending upward. Two days ago, we surpassed the sustainable threshold. Yesterday, we used 480 million litres of water: that is the threshold. While we reduced our water use slightly from the day before, we simply have to do more," Mayor Gondek said. "If our water usage continues to trend up, and our water supply can't keep up, the taps will run dry at some point."

She underlined that while there are no indoor water restrictions as of yet, if water usage continues to trend upward this could change.

"We are counting on your goodwill to reduce your indoor water use. But if we can't do our part by banding together, there may be some restrictions that come into place. We don't know what that looks like. I don't want to get to that stage."

Mayor Brown reiterated his plea to residents in Airdrie about making small adjustments to their water usage. 

"We are so fortunate to turn the tap on and have clean, fresh drinking water... Lots of places around the world, don't have that opportunity and we need to remind ourselves, that it's a small adjustment in how we do things; shutting the water off when you wash your hands, doing those types of things," he said. "We want to remind all of our businesses, and all of our residents to continue to be vigilant, reduce the amount of water, and take the stress off the system."

He added that he doesn't want to see a situation in which water pressure is reduced in Airdrie.

"We want to make sure we're doing everything to support Calgary through this process. It comes down to being good neighbours; we need to support our neighbours in Calgary, and we need to support our friends and neighbours and family and Airdrie."

The Calgary Mayor also impressed upon the fact that it's not just residents who are being asked to conserve water, city operations are also cutting back.

"One out of every three litres that we're using in the city when it comes to water is used by commercial customers and you've had questions about their usage. I can tell you that more than 700 of the city's top commercial water users have been contacted directly and they're doing everything they can to reduce their water use," she stated. "Within The City of Calgary, our operations have also cut down on our water use. We have heard complaints that city golf courses are still watering their greens, and we've heard that water trucks are still out watering trees and this is true. But the water that's being used is not the water coming out of the treatment plant. It is non-potable or recycled water."

Airdrie's water usage sees an uptick

According to the city's data, yesterday showed an increase in water use – creeping up to a 17 per cent reduction from pre-water restriction usage.

"We need everyone to continue their efforts to reduce water use. Genesis Place will be closed throughout the weekend to help conserve water," The City stated on Thursday.

The City is also underlining to residents that development activities may continue if using non-potable water.

"Contractors have been notified that they can bring water from unaffected areas (e.g., Cochrane, Okotoks) with proper documentation. City operations are also using non-potable water."

Previously, Airdrie's water consumption use was recorded to be down an average of 23 per cent since June 5, before the water main break and the outdoor water restrictions were announced. Under level four water restrictions, residents can not:

  • Water lawns, gardens, trees, shrubs and flowers by any method other than rainwater.
  • Wash down any outdoor surfaces, including exterior building surfaces, windows, sidewalks, driveways, or walkways of any sort unless your business requires them to for health and safety reasons.
  • Wash cars on driveways or streets.
  • Fill outdoor decorative features, fountains, pools, or hot tubs.
  • Use potable water for construction purposes such as grading, compaction, or dust control.

The City is strongly encouraging voluntary indoor water restrictions which include:

  • Use dishwasher and washing machine only when required and with full loads.
  • Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth or shaving.
  • Limit showers to five minutes or less and keep baths shallow.
  • Scrape plates clean rather than rinsing food off.
  • Turn off humidifiers and ice machines, delay washing vehicles,
  • Businesses using large volumes of non-essential water, such as laundromats and car washes, are being asked to reduce water use.
  • Businesses using water to deliver a product or service that is life-sustaining for people and animals are exempt. Other exemptions include any businesses that must use water to meet health code standards, such as health centres and restaurants.

"There are no boil water advisories in effect within the City of Airdrie and water remains safe to drink. We thank residents for their cooperation in making temporary sacrifices to ensure that Airdrie and our surrounding communities have water for life-saving purposes," The City added.

Work on water main break repairs to resume

Yesterday, The City of Calgary stated that work had restarted in repairing a large feeder main break near 16 Avenue Northwest and Home Road following an incident overnight that injured two workers on site.

"Shortly before 10 p.m. on Wednesday, a City employee and a contractor working on welding repair were injured. Both workers were transported to hospital, one in stable, non-life-threatening condition and one in serious, non-life threatening condition," a city release stated.

Work was shut down immediately to keep the site safe. Following Occupational Health and Safety Alberta’s inspection this morning deeming the site safe, work is expected to resume this afternoon.

"Due to the safety incident that occurred overnight, we had to temporarily pause our work on site today. The safety of our staff is our number one priority," said City of Calgary Chief Administrative Officer David Duckworth. "This incident is a reminder that while we are committed to this critical work it can also be dangerous. It is more important that we do it safely and not just fast."

In the meantime, the removed pipe was transported to another location for additional failure analysis.

"We continue to assess the information collected from our inspections to inform our plans going forward. We are in the final stages of completing the repair and are finalizing our plan to return the pipe into service," The City stated.

On Thursday, the Alberta Emergency Alert advisory was updated to show that the advisory due to the feeder main break along 16 Avenue Northwest in Calgary is still active.

"... Has impacted the city's water supply. Supply levels remain in a critical state, affecting the city's ability to provide water to communities and ensure adequate water is available to support emergency fire suppression. This alert remains in effect for all communities on Calgary's water supply, including Airdrie, Strathmore, and Chestermere," the alert stated on Thursday morning.

A fire ban remains in effect for The City of Calgary as well as Airdrie, however after consulting with the construction industry, the Calgary Fire Department is now permitting certain lower-risk hot works activities for roofing (restrictions on this work apply and work using open flames are prohibited). 

All Calgary City-operated aquatic fitness facilities and leisure centres are open, including weight rooms. North Mount Pleasant and Wildflower Arts Centres are open. Swimming pools, arenas, water parks and showers remain closed. Detours are in place as 16 Avenue remains closed at Home Road Northwest.

An update by city officials is expected this afternoon. 

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