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Contact: Utilities | T 250 707 3332 (After hours: select "option 2") | E-mail
Contact our Utilities Department for inquiries about hydrant permits, BC One Locate requests, customer water/wastewater operations, or to report a concern. Most areas of WFN IR#9 and IR#10 are serviced with water, sewer and all other utilities. We own and operate our water distribution systems as well as the sanitary sewer collection systems. Both the IR#9 and IR#10 water systems rely on Okanagan Lake as a raw water source. Each water system consists of a raw water pump station at which chlorine is added to provide primary disinfection, after which disinfected water is pumped into the distribution system.
service request/report
To monitor water quality, water samples are collected weekly and tested at WFN's in-house lab for acceptable bacteriological quality. As a quality control measure to verify the in-house testing, water samples are also sent on a monthly basis to an outside independent lab to provide a comparative assessment. We work cooperatively with Health Canada and First Nations Health Authority to maintain safe and potable water for Tsinstikeptum IR #9 and IR #10.
Within IR#9, we have a level III water distribution system, a level II water treatment system, and a level I wastewater collection system. The water supply for the IR #9 water system includes a main Okanagan Lake pump station, chlorinator, deep lake intake, two booster stations, and four linked reservoir cells with a total storage volume of approximately 10,000,000 liters. The distribution system comprises 30 kilometers of various sized water mains, ranging from 100mm to 500 mm diameter, and nine pressure reducing valve (PRV) stations. Within IR#10, we have a level II water distribution system, a level II water treatment system and a level I wastewater collection system. The IR #10 water system includes a main pump station on Okanagan Lake, a chlorinator, a deep intake, a booster station and three linked reservoirs with a total storage volume of 4,300,000 liters. The water distribution system comprises approximately 14 kilometers of various sized water mains ranging from 100 mm dia. to 600mm dia.
The collection system on IR #9 includes 16.5 km of sewer mains and three lift stations. The collection system on IR#10 includes 12.5 kilometers of sewer main, one lift station, and an equalization tank. Sewer treatment services are provided through a servicing agreement with the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO).
Don't Rush, Think Before you Flush
In case of an after hours water or sewer utility related emergency, call 250-707-3332 and press "2" when promoted, then wait for the call to transfer to our on-call Operator.
General inquiries can be e-mailed to wfnutilities@wfn.ca. To request information regarding the following, please e-mail us:
We take samples once a week. Samples are run through our in-house water lab, and a confirmation set of samples are sent to an outside lab once a month to verify our sample results.
Once a year, a full comprehensive water sample is taken and sent to an outside lab to evaluate our raw water quality.
If you live in a mobile home park or a private walled development you would first need to contact your park manager or strata company to address with the situation. If there is further support needed the park manager or the strata will contact the Utilities Department for further assistance.
If you live outside of these two described areas and are on WFN lands you would contact the Utilities Department directly at 250-707-3332.
There are three water quality advisory/notice levels, including a Water Quality Advisory, Boil Water Notice, and Do Not Use Notice.
Turbidity refers to fine suspended particles of clay, silt, organic and inorganic matter, plankton and other microscopic organisms that are picked up by water as it passes through a watershed. We measure turbidity levels on an ongoing basis.
We measure turbidity levels according to the following index:
It is recommended that newborns and people with compromised immune systems drink boiled water or a safe alternative if they are served by an unfiltered water source.
FAIR: 1-5 NTU It is recommended that children, the elderly, people with compromised immune systems and anyone seeking additional protection drink boiled water or a safe alternative.
POOR: >5 NTU It is recommended that all users drink boiled water or a safe alternative. Tap water intended for consumption should be brought to a rolling boil for at least one minute.
There are four stages to residential and commercial watering regulations. Stage 1 is in effect year round.
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Currently the Operators are at the certification levels below:
Our Utilities employees are regularly working on their education and upgrading certification in all areas, where possible.
Interested in working with our Utilities department? To understand how the department is organized, please refer to the image below. Utilities is a division of the Development Services Department.