Water Treatment Plant

View larger water treatment plant flow diagram Opens in new windowWater Treatment Overview

The City of Salmon Arm constructed and commissioned a state-of-the-art Water Treatment Plant (WTP) and placed it on line in May 2009. The facility meets and exceeds the IHA's multi-barrier approach to water quality and the treated water exceeds the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality (GCDWQ). The approach aims for:

  • 4 – 99.99% log inactivation and/or removal of viruses
  • 3 – 99.9% log inactivation and/or removal of Giardia and Cryptosporidium
  • 2 – Two forms of treatment (e.g. filtration and disinfection)
  • 1 – Less than 1 NTU turbidity
  • 0 – Zero E. coli and fecal coliform

The WTP is fed from a low lift pumping station which draws water from the new intake pipe in Shuswap Lake. A coagulant and polymer are added; the water is initially rapidly mixed and the mixing speed is decreased prior to entering the dual media filters. The filtered water is disinfected with ultraviolet light and sodium hypochlorite. Sodium hypochlorite is added as a secondary disinfectant to provide the necessary chlorine residual required by the GCDWQ.

The treated water gravity-flows into a clear well and is then pumped to the distribution system from the high lift pumping station located at Canoe Beach. The water is pumped up to two main pressure zones and then introduced to the distribution network. The distribution system consists of 14 storage reservoirs and seven different pressure zones.

The WTP has a nominal capacity of 40 ML/day and hydraulic capacity of 60 ML/day with an average daily flow of approximately 16 ML/day in the summer and 6.5 ML/day in the winter. Both the Water Treatment Plant and the distribution system are classified as Level 4 facilities, based on complexity and capacity, by the Environmental Operators Certification Program (EOCP). The facilities are staffed by one chief operator and two operators who oversee all aspects of water treatment and distribution throughout the city, ensuring the production and delivery of safe, potable water.