Where Does the Water Come From? A history of the Eston- Water Line and Water West Pipeline Project

When originally established in 1964, the EK system drew water directly from the South River through an inlet at the river’s edge. The water was pumped to a reservoir at Snipe Lake, and then Eston and Kindersley pumped water from the open reservoir to their own reservoirs. At the time, this was the longest water line in Saskatchewan.

Pumping directly from the river created problems when the river was at high velocity due to the amount of sand and dirt that would be picked up by the pumps. This created wear on the pumps and provided dirty water to the towns, so the general practice was to not pump during periods of high flow.

The original pump house was becoming obsolete and more water was required than it could supply. Not being able to pump at various times put a strain on the water in storage at the two towns.

In 1980, Beckie Hydrogeologists, with assistance from PFRA, completed a study of options at the river location. The Tyner Valley Aquifer crosses under the river at this lo- cation, and wells beside the river were considered. The quality of the Tyner Valley water was not considered ac- ceptable for drinking water so that option was not selected. The result was to be a system of “induction/infiltration” using the sands of the Tyner Valley as a filter.

A “shield” well located adjacent to the river into the Tyner Valley would be used to continuously pump water from that EK Production Wells and a shield well at Tyner Valley Aquifer location back to the river at about 100 gallons per minute. Water from the river would flow through the sand toward that site to recharge the aquifer. A second well between the shield well and the river would intercept the river water as it was flowing into the Tyner Valley, resulting in a supply of water that is 90% river water-filtered through sand and 10% Tyner Valley, and provides a high quality for drinking water.

The wells are about 100’ in depth and the static water level in the well is about 22’ below the surface. Pumping rates for supply wells can be as high as 300 gallons per minute. There are currently two shield wells and four supply wells in operation that can provide up to 1,000 gallons per minute. If there is a need for higher capacity there will have to be additional wells put into service.

In 2000, Kindersley was experiencing supply problems so the capacity needed to be increased. A new pumping system was put in place for 2004 that could supply up to 600 gallons per minute. The pump house was designed for expansion to work with the Water West Project that was being considered at that time.

The Water West Project completed in 2013 saw an expansion in the capacity by increasing the size of the line from 8” to 12” for a portion from the river through the river hills, and adding a third supply pump. A new pump house at Snipe Lake combined with some increased size on the Kin- dersley line has increased the amount of water available to Kindersley. The original system had an open reservoir at Snipe Lake but now that is enclosed, resulting in a higher quality of water going to Eston and Kindersley. The EK

(Eston-Kindersley) Line

After installing water and sewer in 1955, Eston was out of water in 1959 and 1960 having drained the surrounding sloughs. In 1960 and fol- lowing years, the Town had to pump water over- land from the river. In November of 1961, Mayor Joe Martin called a meeting of the municipalities in the area, covering the area from the river to Rosetown and , and inviting various government departments to discuss the concept of a regional water supply. Work on the original line at Richardson’s Coulee.

In the end, only Eston and Kindersley were willing to con- sider the project. With a great deal of effort from Joe Mar- tin, Mayor of Eston, and Eric Halpenny, Mayor of Kinder- sley, the Eston-Kindersley water line was constructed. The line opened in 1964 and, in the first year, 23 million gallons were provided to Eston and 30 million to Kinder- sley. In 2012, the system supplied Eston with 35 million gallons and 223 million gallons to Kindersley. The fore- sight and determination of the communities in 1961 has meant a reliable water supply for present day citizens. Mayor Joe Martin discussing project with engineers at the top of the hill by the river.