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Wells
Much of the entire Oceanside area is serviced by wells. Virtually the entire rural area relies on private wells. The town of Qualicum Beach has two major well fields with a number of wells in each field. The City of Parksville draws much of its water supply from one wellfield. During the summer months, Parksville supplements its water supply by drawing water from the Englishman River/Arrowsmith Lake Dam supply. The remaining outlying residential communities are serviced by a number of privately-owned water systems or systems that are owned by the Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN). These systems draw the majority of their water from a number of wells, if not their entire supply. As the catchment zone for most wells is located in whole, or in part, within the developed area of Oceanside, it is safe to assume that all wells are at risk of some form of contamination. This contamination can be naturally occurring, as a result of agricultural or forestry activities, domestic activities, or industrial/commercial activities. Much of the geology of the area is referred to as the Quadra Sands, a glacial deposit left after the last ice age. Unfortunately, as is typical with most sands, they are porous, and contamination that enters one area can easily migrate a considerable distance. Wellhead protection or protection of small areas immediately adjacent to a well becomes inadequate protection if portions of the catchment zone are at risk of contamination. The Oceanside Catchment Zone is part of a much larger general catchment area extending from approximately the Duncan area to Campbell River, and from the Straight of Georgia to peaks of the mountains of central Vancouver Island. This area is slated to receive a large increase in population during the next few years; ultimately millions could be eating, sleeping, playing, and working within the area that their water comes from.
The News Weekender, June 18, 2004 The Arrowsmith Water Service is a partnership of the Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN), the City of Parksville and the Town of Qualicum Beach. The partnership was formed to help ensure a long-term safe and secure supply of water for the RDN's Nanoose Bay and French Creek Water Utilities, the City of Parksville and the Town of Qualicum Beach. At this time, only the City of Parksville and the Madrona/Wall Beach Water Service in the RDN are benefiting from the storage capacity in the Arrowsmith Lake Reservoir. To meet the projected water supply needs of the growing population in the Oceanside area, Parksville, Qualicum Beach, and the Regional District of Nanaimo formed the Arrowsmith Water Service and constructed the Arrowsmith Lake Dam. The dam is at the headwaters of the Englishman River. From the start there was considerable controversy regarding the dam, ranging from environmental issues about the design and the location of the dam, to the concerns regarding construction procedures. One environmental issue was related to the concern over whether an adequate quantity of water would be released during the summer months to support the fish population in the Englishman River. This was resolved to an extent by designing the intake system to be a number of miles downstream from the dam. If the agreed-upon amounts of water are released during the summer months, it is believed that sufficient quantities of water may exist in the river to support the fish. The unfortunate problem, however, is that the water is unprotected, and as it flows through miles of developed land, is subjected to the risk of many contaminates. This concern is somewhat mitigated by the fact that the entire watershed for the lake is also unprotected from logging and other activities that to date have been allowed. Within its boundaries, the only protection the watershed currently has, is its remote location that limits human activity in the area. The Town Of Qualicum Beach draws its water exclusively from wells. The wells producing the bulk of the water used by the town are located in close proximity to the Little Qualicum River. The water obtained from these wells has been the recent subject of a boil water order intended to remove the harmful effects of bacteria in the water. The Englishman River like the other significant water courses of the area begins life in the pristine mountains of central Vancouver Island. These mountains are in an area where the major pressures on water purity are logging and its related activities, such as reforestation and the fertilizing of new forest plantations. Recreational and other domestic activities have little impact at this time, and there are no significant mines currently in operation. Once the water courses descend to the lower coastal lands, they become subjected to more risk of contamination. The Englishman River is typical of most, with the first threat to its health being the risk of agricultural contamination. Animal husbandry practices are a risk but the greater risks are from the application of fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides, both natural forms and those created by man. Further downstream the pressures of residential land use, ranging from septic fields through to horticultural uses, as well as an increased chance of contamination from industrial chemicals are added to the mix. Closer to the coastline itself, the balance of the contamination risk shifts more to the assorted industrial/commercial contaminates. The level of human activity increases the closer the river gets to the coast, and the possibility of negligent contamination increases as well, as does the risk of accidental contamination. The nearer to the coastline the greater demand for water. Most of us are familiar with the general idea of a domestic water distribution system. In the Oceanside area, there are a multitude of systems that have been constructed, to a variety of standards, over the years. At one time, many systems were constructed using asbestos cement pipe. Generally speaking, asbestos cement pipe is not considered to be a risk factor, although, when the opportunity presents itself, the old AC pipe is replaced with plastic pipe. An efficient water distribution system should have not only an adequate pipe size but also numerous loops and connections back to itself. As the Oceanside area grows, many water systems have been added, in an ad hoc fashion. Over time, there again will be a need for reconstruction to achieve maximal efficiency, and also to ensure that sufficient quantities of water are distributed for all necessary purposes including that of adequate fire protection. Major Uses of Water in Oceanside Apart from domestic consumption, ranging from such activities as watering one's lawn or washing one's car, water is also used for household cleaning, cooking and general sustenance. The Oceanside area also uses water for a variety of agricultural purposes, and for some industrial purposes. During the summer months, the numerous golf courses in the area use large volumes of water. Click here to view a typical water demand pie chart (not based on Oceanside). Permission to draw water from the river requires authorization by British Columbia's Ministry of the Environment, Water Stewardship Division which has the responsibility of issuing approvals (for short-term use) or licences that outline the terms and conditions under which the rights are granted. At the present time, there 25 licences and/or applications for water withdrawal from the Englishman River. The licences may be viewed at the Ministry of the Environment, Water Stewardship Division's web site. (Type in 'Englishman' in the Stream Name text box, then press the Submit button to be taken to the Englishman River licence information. Please note that GD stands for imperial gallons/day.)One of the questions that concerns the AWCS is whether there is any time constraint on when these licensees can remove water. Parksville would clearly want their water in the summer, for example, but what about organizations such as 'Ducks Unlimited'. Are there restrictions on when they can obtain their share of water? Obviously there is yet much work to be done to understand even our own water system. The City of Parksville has a population of approximately 10,300 residents and the growth rate, according to the 2001 census, is at 9%. The City draws its water in the summertime from the Englishman River and from 15 wells. The water in the river is supplemented by water from the Arrowsmith Lake Reservoir when the river waters drop below specified levels. A licence agreement issued in 1996 provides approval for the Arrowsmith Water Service to draw as much as 1,540,000,000 gallons of water each year from the river. Parksville alone, one of the partners in the Water Service, has a peak water use in the summer of around 3 million gallons a day. This number drops to approximately 300,000 to 400,000 gallons per day in the winter. The Town of Qualicum Beach has an approximate population base of 7000 residents. The town currently obtains its water supply from nine groundwater wells in two wellfields. The "Chartwell" subdivision (approx. population of 900 residents) may be joining the Town of Qualicum Beach in the future. | ||
