Region asks residents to conserve water during pipe repair

Waterloo Region – Regional staff has identified a large water pipe that needs repair and will shut it off for these repairs from approximately August 19-25. This pipe supplies roughly 20 per cent of the region’s drinking water.

Impacted areas include Kitchener, Waterloo, northwest Cambridge, St Jacobs, Elmira, Breslau, Mannheim, Shingletown, West Montrose, Conestogo, and St Agatha. Residents and businesses in these areas are asked to reduce all water use as much as possible until the repair is complete.

“This is critical infrastructure, a large water pipe reaching four feet in diameter in some sections, that delivers drinking water to our community, and supplies water for emergency services,” said Mari MacNeil, director of Water and Wastewater Service for the Region of Waterloo. “We hope to make repairs quickly without significant impacts to the community.”

The Region asks that residents and businesses reduce water use between August 19 and 25, to ensure our supply stays in good shape by:

• Not watering lawns. Use watering cans to water gardens.
• Not planting grass seed or laying new sod. New sod permits issued by August 16 will be exempt.
• Not washing vehicles at home
• Not refilling pools, hot tubs, garden ponds or fountains
• Not cleaning or pressure washing exteriors
• Reducing showering time to five or less minutes
• Reducing water use when brushing teeth
• Reducing water use when doing dishes and laundry
• Checking for leaks in faucets, showerheads and toilets

“We will continue to monitor our water supplies to ensure we have enough to service these impacted areas and meet our emergency needs, and we’re going to rely on our community to help,” added MacNeil. “Reducing all water use for the next week will go a long way to make sure we have enough supply.”

The Region has about 484 kilometres of water pipes that deliver drinking water to communities across the region. Visit the Region’s website for more water conservation tips. 

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