Advisory for SALT SPRING ISLAND (Lake Maxwell Waterworks), British Columbia

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SALT SPRING ISLAND (Lake Maxwell Waterworks)

Type: Boil Water  -  Active

Issued: 10/28/2024

Details:

28/OCT/2024 - BWN issued by Island Health, no reason provided. 
As per North Salt Spring Water District (NSSWD) website: 
1) Current treatment process (chlorination) is no longer capable of meeting Island Healths drinking water standards. 
2) In the case of toxic cyanobacterial bloom, the current treatment may not be able to remove the toxin from the treated water. 
3) Without the Dissolved Air Floatation (DAF) process they cannot remove organics that combine with chlorine to form potentially carcinogenic by-products in the treated water. 4) Island Health Authority has mandated that NSSWD take steps to bring the Maxwell Lake Water System into compliance with Health Canada Standards.

22/OCT/2024 - Water Moratorium Policy Update - Following the completion of a detailed analysis of water supply reliability and water system infrastructure, the North Salt Spring Water District (NSSWD) is proposing a partial lift of its Water Moratorium Policy that has been in place since 2014, potentially allowing up to 300 multifamily units in their service area. The Moratorium imposed was initially justified due to concerns about unsustainable water withdrawals; The NSSWD Board and staff have taken great efforts to responsibly manage Salt Spring Islands largest yet limited water supply however, it has hindered the growth and development of the community.

27/MAY/2024 - BWN issued: Distribution System integrity failure; Necessary works have been completed; Waiting on water samples to demonstrate water quality is satisfactory. (This Advisory is still active on Island Health Website as of Oct 28, 2024)

14/JUL/2023 - WQA issued for elevated concentrations of Trihalomethanes (THMs). However, the water quality of Maxwell Lake has been a concern for the (NSSWD) and Island Health since 2008. The Maxwell system can experience elevated concentrations of Trihalomethanes (THMs).  This is attributed to the reaction between chlorinated water and naturally occurring organic materials such as wood and leaves found in the Maxwell Lake Watershed. For example, in 2022 the average THM concentration was 146.58 µg/L (guideline is 100 µg/L for THMs) 88% of the THM samples taken during 2022 were above the guideline limits.