UNDAY NORTH AND WEST VANCOUVER * oft * ve eatery = TT aoe SE aa Aiea sive Lene AG ers THE VOICE GF per z Tis S Colin James jets in for aay ty : tie a January 7, 1990 News 985-2131 Classified 986-6222 Distribution 986-1337 48 papes 25¢ NORTH SHORE RESERVOIR WATER QUALITY RAISES CONCERNS man THE CHIEF medical health adviser to the Greater Van- couver Regional District wants water filtration incorporated in at least one of the North Shore’s two reservoir systems to help reduce the increasing health hazards posed by murky drinking water in Lower Mainland water pipes. Dr. John Blatherwick, who is . . , By TIMOTHY REN! Ww also the chief medical health of- ¥ News RHA ficer for Vancouver City, said Thursday he wants the project filtration systems at the Capilano reviewed this year. and Seymour reservoirs is $500 Municipalities in the GVRD get million. Total cost to install water their fresh water from the _ filtration at the Capilano, Seymour Capilano, Seymour and Coquitlam and Coquitlams reservoirs is ap- reservoirs. But Vancouver City and proximately $600 million. the North Shore get their water But chief GVRD water engineer solely from the two North Shore John Morse said installing filtra- reservoirs, which chronically suffer tion planis is at the high end of the from higher turbidity levels than spectrum in an overall long-term the Coquitlam reservoir. GVRD program to preserve and In addition to water filtration, improve Lower Mainland water Blatherwick also wants a higher quality. priority placed on a project to “*lv’s a sure fire approach,”’ he connect Vancouver to the Co- said, ‘*but it would involve a high quitlam reservoir so its water could capital cost and staggering yearly be used to replace or dilute North operating costs.”’ Shore water during tires of high Morse said there were other turbidity. more cost-efficient ways to im- Completion of that project is prove Lower Mainland water qual- currently scheduled for 1995. “But ity. ‘It depends on how much you that means dirty water for Van- want to pay,’’ he said. couver for the next five years,’’ he Water turbidity in local drinking said. water is caused by mudslides Water turbidity, or murkiness, released into reservoirs by heavy Blatherwick said, posed no im- ..'ns. mediate health hazard to Van- La.t November a large slide in couver and North Shure residents. the Capilano reservoir occurred But he said turbidity can create approximately five kilometres real health problems because it above the head of the Capilano reduces the effectiveness of chlo- lake. rine to neutralize possibly harmful High water turbidity readings bacteria. resulted and took weeks to drop. It can also build up in the Lower Morse said the North Shore’s Mainland water delivery system Capilano reservoir, because of its and promot< bacterial seeding of soils and geological makeup and the slime {ayer in water pipes. the heavier North Shore rainfall, is Blatherwick said there have been the most susceptible of the worse years for Vancouver water GVRD’s reservoirs to mudslides. turbidity than 1989, but there were It would also be the most dif- extended stretches in October, ficult and expensive of the three November and December when reservoirs to outfit with a water turbidity in Vancouver water was filtration plant. up to six times greater than ac- In News stories last year the ceptable levels and up to 30 times Western Canada Wilderness greater than Canadian drinking Committee (WCWC) maintained water standards. that GVRD clear-cut logging prac- FORUM TO ADDRESS WATERSHED LOGGING: PAGE 5 Bill Kimmett, the chief public tices in the watershed areas have health inspector for the North increased the threat of slides and Shore, said North Shore drinking thereby adversely affected the water is sampled regularly for ex- quality of Lower Mainland water cessive bacteria in residences from supplies. Deep Cove to Horseshoe Bay. He said complaints about cloudy But Morse said studies of the - : water from North Shore residents watershed areas have found ao ev- NEWS photo Nell Lasente were not appreciably higher in idence that GVRD logging in its 1989 than in past years. watersheds has had any negative ROB WALLACE, director of skiing at Grouse Mountain, measures 26 inches or 66 cm at the mourtain’s base. Heavy szowfall. this week has ended a near month-ieng snow drought and enabled limited skiing to start up at the three North Shore mountains. Estimated cost to install water impact on water quality.