Town of Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia

Water Suppy, Treatment & Distribution

Overview

The source water supply for the Town of Mahone Bay is Oakland Lake. Oakland Lake is located approximately 1 km northeast of the Town off of Highway #3. The surface area of the lake is 66 hectares (162 acres), with an estimated daily yield of 5 million litres/day (1.1 million gallons/day). The Watershed Area surrounding Oakland Lake is approximately 405 hectares (1,000 acres). Activities within the Watershed Area are regulated and restricted to protect lake water quality. In July 2007, the Province of Nova Scotia enacted the Oakland Lake Watershed Protected Water Area Designation (429 kB), which describes the Watershed Area and all applicable regulations & restrictions within.

The Raw Water Pumphouse is located at Oakland Lake, and pumps lake water through a 200 mm diameter transmission main a distance of 3 km to the Water Treatment Plant located at 70 Zwicker Lane.

The new Water Treatment Plant was commissioned in August 2008, and meets all current requirements of the NS Department of Environment. The water treatment process equipment generally includes the following; coagulation pre-treatment system, micro-filtration water treatment system, ultra violet disinfection system, chlorination disinfection, and various chemical feed meter pump systems. Water produced by the plant is stored in a 2 million litre (440,000 imperial gallon) water storage reservoir. The water storage reservoir provides capacity for domestic water use and fire protection (fire hydrants).

Treated water is delivered from the storage reservoir by gravity to our customers through an underground water distribution system which was largely constructed in the late 1940’s with some later modifications and upgrades. The water distribution system consists of the following:

• 3.2 km of 150 mm (6 inch) diameter Cast Iron piping
• 3.1 km of 150 mm (6 inch) diameter PVC piping
• 1.7 km of 200 mm (8 inch) diameter Cast Iron piping
• 1.5 km of 200 mm (8 inch) diameter PVC piping

Water Rates and Regulations

Town of Mahone Bay water rates and regulations, as approved May 15, 2009, by the NS Utility & Review Board are below:

Schedule of Rates for Water & Water Services (effective April 1, 2010).

Schedule of Rules & Regulations Governing the Supply of Water and Water Services (effective June 2009) (572.97 kB).

Water Connections & Disconnections

To have your water turned off for plumbing repairs, and then turned back on during regular business hours costs $50.00. This fee increases to $200 if the service is required during evenings or weekends.

Water Service Laterals

The Town is responsible for the maintenance and repair of that portion of a water service lateral which is located on Town property; this is usually the portion located between the water main and the curbstop valve located at the property line. The property owner is responsible for the maintenance and repair of that portion of the water service lateral located beyond the curbstop valve and the building. The Town installs all new water service laterals between the water main and curbstop valve, as per the costs outlined under Section 22 of its Schedule of Rules & Regulations Governing the Supply of Water and Water Services (effective June 2009). The property owner is responsible for all costs associated with having the service lateral installed from the curbstop valve to the building. This portion of the water service lateral must be inspected and approved by the Town prior to backfilling of the trench.