Residents in Regina, Moose Jaw may notice changes in taste and colour of water

Residents in Regina and Moose Jaw may notice some changes in their water as construction continues at the Buffalo Pound Water Treatment Plant.

A shutdown lasting a maximum of 16 hours is taking place Wednesday, Dec. 4.

The shutdown is necessary to allow a general contractor to complete work on the plant – which includes tying in the plant’s raw water pipeline crossover and the connection for the plant’s biological activated contactor backwash system.

In a post to Facebook on Dec. 3, the plant noted that during the shutdown, it will be unable to supply both Regina and Moose Jaw with any new water.

The City of Regina will be pulling its water for the duration of the shutdown from its back-up wells.

“Residents may notice a change to the taste and colour of their tap water over the next few days, but it will remain safe to drink and meets all regulatory requirements,” the city noted in its own message on Dec. 3.

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The City of Moose Jaw said in its message to residents that it does not anticipate any service disruption for residents during the shutdown.

So far in the construction, the plant has been shut down numerous times in order for the necessary construction to take place.

“Many were short duration and had no impact to the cities of Regina and Moose Jaw,” the post read.

“A few of them were longer term. To mitigate some of the risk, the longer shutdowns were planned for low flow seasons.”

The plant has been under construction since the summer of 2022. Work is expected to wrap up early in 2026.

More shutdowns of the plant are scheduled before construction at the water treatment plant wraps up.