Construction begins on the North Calgary Water Servicing project
The City of Calgary is set to begin construction on the North Calgary Water Servicing project (NCWS), a critical infrastructure investment which will provide clean, safe and reliable drinking water to existing and future communities in northwest Calgary while increasing redundancy in our drinking water system.
The project involves the construction of a new 22-kilometre-long water feeder main and ten support facilities, which include pump stations, expansions to existing underground reservoirs, tie-ins to existing infrastructure and connections at the Bearspaw Water Treatment plant. Once in service, the feeder main and facilities will deliver 100 million litres (ML) per day of clean, safe and reliable drinking water to existing and future communities in northwest Calgary, with long-term capacity reaching 410 ML per day following the completion of a new water treatment plant.
“The North Calgary Water Servicing project is a key step in supporting Calgary’s continued growth,” says Melanie Gray, Senior Project Engineer – Utilities Delivery, who is Program Manager for the project. “It not only ensures a reliable supply of clean, safe drinking water for communities in the northwest, but also strengthens our overall water system by adding critical redundancy. This means we can continue delivering essential water services even when existing feeder mains or pump stations are out of service in the event of emergency or planned repairs.”
The feeder main will run north from the Bearspaw Water Treatment Plant near Stoney Trail and Nose Hill Drive, crossing under Crowchild Trail up to 144 Avenue N.W. and then connecting to the Northridge Feeder Main at 144 Avenue and 14 Street N.W. The ten facilities span throughout the length of the feeder main.
Feeder main construction is starting at two locations. The first is along Country Hills Boulevard and Rocky Ridge Road within the site of the new Rocky Ridge Athletic Park east of the Shane Homes YMCA. The second location is along Rocky Ridge Road N.W. north of the YMCA to 144 Avenue N.W. Construction of the first two facilities will begin at the Bearspaw Water Treatment Plant and the current site of the Top Hill Reservoir. Construction of the feeder main is expected to be complete by the end of 2028, with facility construction and system commissioning finalized by the end of 2029, at which point the entire system will be in service.
This project is one of several others which contributes to increase Calgary’s water transmission capacity which also includes the South Calgary Watering Servicing project (complete by 2031), the Crosstie Feeder Main (complete in 2029), a new water treatment plant (completion TBD: currently in conceptional design) and the Bearspaw South Feeder Main Improvements project.