By Lynda Myer
Considering that construction of Vancouver’s Stanley Park Water Supply Tunnel has been postponed, the estimated date for its commence is late 2024, while end of 2029 is determined time for completion of this project and it is around a year later than originally planned.
Although replacing the existing water main remains a priority as Metro Vancouver says, because of the complexity of this large drinking water infrastructure project it is still finalizing the necessary approvals.
The major intention of building this new tunnel will be replacing an existing water main that was constructed in the 1930s, and is at the end of its service life.
Three shafts are due to be constructed in Stanley Park for digging the tunnel, install the water main, and build the valve chambers.
According to a Metro Vancouver spokesperson: “The shaft locations, along with the tunnel alignment and construction process, were carefully selected based on rigorous geotechnical, environmental, archaeological, technological, and traffic studies. When complete, the new tunnel will meet current seismic standards, help ensure the continued reliable delivery of clean, safe drinking water to the communities of Vancouver, Richmond, Delta, Tsawwassen First Nation, and Point Roberts, and increase the capacity of the existing system for the region’s growing population.”
In order to ensuring that Metro Vancouver can continue delivering world-class drinking water to the region’s almost 2.8 million residents each day, upgrading aging water supply infrastructure is critical.
