Stage 4 water restrictions remain in effect in Chestermere as crews work at three sites in northwest Calgary to connect the replacement Bearspaw South Feeder Main. Water use across the regional system was 482 million litres on Friday, Nov. 13, below the 500-million-litre daily threshold Calgary is using during the shutdown.
Friday’s figure followed regional totals of 473 million litres on Tuesday, 475 million on Wednesday and 477 million on Thursday. Those figures cover the shared system, which serves Calgary and neighbouring communities including Chestermere, Airdrie, Strathmore and Tsuut’ina Nation. The regional updates did not give a separate total for Chestermere.
The existing feeder main was shut down Nov. 4 so crews could drain it and connect the replacement. Calgary is relying mainly on one water treatment plant to serve the region while the pipe is out of service. Keeping daily use below 500 million litres helps maintain water pressure and keep enough water available for firefighting.
What Stage 4 means in Chestermere
Chestermere buys treated drinking water from Calgary and delivers it through its own network. Under the regional servicing agreement, Chestermere follows the same restriction stages as Calgary. The city normally uses about 7.8 million litres a day averaged over the year, with average winter use closer to 6.8 million litres a day.
Two separate feeds carry Calgary water into Chestermere. Either can meet the city’s average daily demand. Chestermere also has four reservoir cells that together can hold about 13 million litres, or roughly a day and a half of emergency storage. Both feeds draw from the same regional system, where the shutdown has reduced the amount of water available.
Stage 4 prohibits most outdoor uses of municipal drinking water, including washing a car in the driveway or hosing down a sidewalk. Indoor conservation is voluntary. Households are being asked to keep showers to about three minutes, wait until dishwashers and washing machines are full before running them, and flush toilets only when needed.
Work moves ahead at three sites
At the Shaganappi Pump Station near Edworthy Park, crews had begun welding newly installed sections of pipe by Nov. 13. At 33 Avenue and 89 Street N.W., workers were cutting the existing pipe to make room for a new valve. Calgary expected crews at that site to begin working around the clock on the evening of Nov. 15 and continue for about two weeks.
A third connection is being made near 83 Street N.W. and 33 and 34 avenues. Calgary is also using the shutdown to repair a smaller feeder main along Parkdale Boulevard. Welding had begun at two of those repair sites by Friday.
The replacement is a steel pipe being built alongside the existing main, which first broke in June 2024. Once in service, the new line will take over the work of carrying treated water through that part of the regional system.
When restrictions could ease
The published schedule still calls for about four weeks of restrictions from Nov. 4, putting the expected end of the shutdown in early December. That timing depends on the connection work. Once the connections are complete, crews still have to prepare the replacement pipe for regular service, a step Calgary expects to carry out in December.
Calgary anticipates that outdoor restrictions can be lifted during that final phase. The region will still use the existing main while the replacement is readied, and another break in the old pipe could bring restrictions back. For now, Stage 4 remains in effect in Chestermere and households are still being asked to use less water indoors.