City of Calgary

The City of Calgary provides safe reliable drinking water to over one million Calgarians and the surrounding communities of Airdrie and Chestermere. Two Water Treatment Plants and a complex network of underground pipes, water mains, reservoirs and pump stations deliver this valuable resource to our customers each day. The Bow River supplies the Bearspaw Water Treatment Plant and the Elbow River flows into the Glenmore Reservoir, which is the source for the Glenmore Water Treatment Plant. The Bearspaw Plant primarily supplies water to the north of the city, while the Glenmore plant supplies the south. However, water is interconnected through large diameter transmission mains to ensure a reliable supply to all times. We withdraw water according to demand and within the rules set out by Alberta Environment. We are careful not to exceed our licenses for daily and annual withdrawals and are also careful to maintain enough flow in the river systems to support other users of the water system. Almost all of the water that is removed from the Bow and Elbow Rivers for use in Calgary is returned to the Bow River system after treatment in Calgary's wastewater treatment plants.