Calgary to increase water pressure in feeder main, could ease water restrictions Thursday

City officials say an additional pump at the Bearspaw water treatment plant will be activated by mid-day Monday to increase water speed and pressure on the feeder main.

If all goes well during monitoring over the next three days, an easing of outdoor water restrictions could come on Thursday.

"I cannot stress enough how critical the next 72 hours are," said Mayor Jyoti Gondek in a morning update.

"It may be a situation where increased speed and pressure lead to another hot spot that needs to be addressed."

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Water restrictions have been in place in different stages since a massive break in the main feeder line on June 5.

The main pipe is full of water, but it is currently flowing at 55 per cent of its normal rate. When an additional pump is turned on mid-day Monday, the flow rate will increase to 70 per cent, officials said.

The pipe will be closely monitored with the higher pressure to determine if there are any more weak spots.

"This may be a little alarming to hear. This is part of our calculated decision," said Michael Thompson, Calgary's general manager of infrastructure services.

For now, Calgary remains under Stage 3 of outdoor water restrictions, meaning people are only allowed to water plants with a watering can or bucket using water from a tap.

Moving from Stage 3 to Stage 2 would allow Calgarians to use a sprinkler for up to one hour per week.

In order to remove all water restrictions, the flow rate in the pipe would have to be returned to at least 75 per cent without any issues being found during monitoring of the line.

City crews, contractors and equipment are ready to respond if there are any issues in the feeder main while the water pressure and speed is increased.

Acoustic monitoring of the pipe has been ongoing as the flow rate is increased and officials found three more areas where the steel wire had snapped. That does not mean immediate repair work is necessary, officials said.

The city has committed to a full third-party investigation of what led to the break and how the crisis was handled.

Gondek also vows to advocate for more funding to support infrastructure upgrades and repairs, which she says should be of concern for every municipality across the country.

City hall has not released any information about how much the water main break has cost so far.