Winnipeg’s Water History From the Source to the Tap!

In the late 1800’s, Winnipeg had it’s first water service! “Watermen” began hauling and delivering untreated water from the Assiniboine River using oxcarts.

This water eventually became too polluted by the City’s sewage to be safe to drink. Maryland Bridge (taken 1928). This is the place where water was withdrawn by the watermen.

These were often polluted too. By 1900, the City had begun to use groundwater wells as a source of water These were often polluted too. A dirty well.

In the early 1900s, the population of Winnipeg was growing very quickly. Main Street circa 1911

People began to get sick, and some died of typhoid fever spread by dirty water.

A professor named Charles Slichter studied Winnipeg’s water problems and thought up three solutions Dig more wells North of Winnipeg $ Build a pipeline from the Winnipeg River (Eastern Manitoba) $$ Build a large aqueduct from Shoal Lake (a huge lake on the Manitoba-Ontario border) $$$ Charles Slichter

Classroom Vote Which option would you choose? Drill wells for groundwater north of the city Build a pipeline from Winnipeg River Build an aqueduct from Shoal Lake

At first, City council decided the aqueduct from Shoal Lake was too expensive Winnipeg’s old City Hall

People living in Winnipeg were against council’s decision “We are willing to pay for clean water!!”

The Shoal Lake aqueduct won by a landslide! A new mayor, Thomas R. Deacon (1913), let the citizens of Winnipeg vote on the new water source. Thomas R. Deacon The Shoal Lake aqueduct won by a landslide!

The aqueduct from Shoal Lake runs through 137 kilometres of wilderness to reach city reservoirs

The Greater Winnipeg Water District Railroad was built to transport workers and supplies for the aqueduct’s construction

Construction took 4 years, and ended up costing $17 million (a LOT of money in those days)

The aqueduct is made of concrete and covered with soil so the water doesn’t freeze

The Railway and the Aqueduct This map shows: The path of the GWWD Railway and Aqueduct from Indian Bay (Shoal Lake) to Winnipeg. The major towns along the railway, the #1 (Trans-Canada) Highway, as well as Sandilands Provincial Forest and Whiteshell Provincial Park. Below the map is a profile of the Aqueduct, showing that the water flows by gravity from Shoal Lake to the City. A very small slope (100m over 159 km) is all it takes! No pumps are employed until water arrives at the Deacon Reservoir or if the water level at Shoal Lake drops below the intake pipe at Indian Bay.

Turn on the Tap! Water from Shoal Lake began to flow from Winnipeg taps in April, 1919. There have been no outbreaks of disease from drinking water since then.

The Deacon Reservoir stores water at the end of the aqueduct (near Fermor Ave., just outside the Perimeter Hwy.) so enough is available for everyday

New Water Treatment Plant Design concept (computer generated) Click for images The Plant Today (actual photo) On December 10, 2009 Winnipeg’s new $300 million, state-of-the-art water treatment plant was put into action.

About the same size as…… The water treatment plant is the largest project the Water and Waste Department has done since the aqueduct in 1919. Area of 12,000 ft2 Click for images About the same size as…… the MTS Centre!

Treatment Process The plant is expected to last about 75 years It can treat 400 million litres of water per day Water can still be treated during a long power outage

The treatment process includes the use of ultraviolet light and chlorine to kill bacteria and other organisms that cause disease. UV disinfection chamber

Pumping stations throughout the City bring the water through a series of pipes to our taps. Taché Water Treatment Plant Click through to see the water flow from the Water Treatment plant into the city