Environmental Stewardship
Our model environmental stewardship states that we will:
- provide clean, safe drinking water
- protect, conserve and manage our water supply both now and for the future
- always meet and strive to exceed environmental standards
We are very proud to have a unique relationship with the Wapiti River. We take water, but we also give it back. We were the first in Alberta to have a license requiring diversion.
As part of our Alberta Environment water diversion license, we:
- Monitor aquatic life in the Wapiti River, specifically in the area we draw our water from
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Return a large percentage of the water we remove from the Wapiti River. This means we:
- remove the water
- treat it to make it potable drinking water
- distribute it to customers
- have it returned through sewage
- treat the wastewater
- return the treated water to the Wapiti River
- As an example, 81% of the water we removed for drinking water in 2009 was returned to the river.
Where does your water come from?
Our water comes from the Canadian Rockies, where your water begins a journey from snow/ice/rain in Wapiti Lake, and travels all the way down the Wapiti River until it is withdrawn outside Grande Prairie. Along the way, numerous brooks, swamps and streams flow into the river – providing a source of water which is as close to nature as you can get. We are very fortunate the only thing running into our water source upstream of us is nature – no other communities are upstream of our supply, so we do not have issues with any type of human pollution like most other communities in Canada. Our water is uniquely superb!
Tap Water vs Bottled Water
No matter what you buy, you will always be drinking tap water. Whether it is tap water from another province or state, bottled and shipped to you, or from within the province or city, you will always be drinking treated tap water.
Our tap water is a fraction of the cost of bottled water. The quality is also, as we mentioned above, uniquely superb.
As such, we promote drinking local tap water.
If you find the smell of tap water to be different, that’s because it is fresh. When it is fresh, so you may want to keep some in a pitcher and leave the pitcher overnight. This will allow scents to settle.
As part of our commitment to tap water, we provide over 2500 reusable bottles to community groups every year, which are given out at events in the community.
The Future
A long-term secure, high-quality water supply is of strategic importance to the sustainability and growth of Aquatera and our service area.
The South Peace Regional Water Forum created a long term vision for a regional water system. The vision states the Smoky River as a future raw water source of municipalities in the Grande Prairie area. With this in mind, and potential future expansion of our service region, we will expand our stewardship of the environment.