Arbutus Ridge Water System

Arbutus Ridge Water Treatment

Arbutus Ridge water system is located within the Arbutus Ridge Retirement community in Area C and services this residential development of 646 residential properties, a small commercial block and a golf course.

Supply Treatment and Distribution

The source water for this water system comes from three groundwater wells located on the golf course lands.  The water receives chlorine disinfection and is stored in a 1295 m3 concrete reservoir and pumped to the distribution system as required by the customers of the system. A stand-by power generator provided emergency power in case of hydro power failure.

Critical equipment is monitored 24-hours a day for malfunctions, such as high or low chlorine levels or pump failures; if such an abnormality occurs, an alarm is immediately sent to the on-duty pager to alert CVRD staff for quick response.

Annual Water Testing 

Arbutus Ridge water system is sampled, at a minimum, once a week. The following table shows the sampling frequency and parameters tested for the water system:

FrequencyParameter TestedLaboratory
WeeklyBacterial (E. Coli and Total Coliforms)Samples are submitted to the Island Health Authority for testing by a provincial laboratory
AnnualFull spectrum analysis based on the Canadian Drinking Water Guidelines. Sampling of the source and distribution is alternated each year.
 Bureau Veritas

Testing results can be found in the Annual Water Report completed each year.

Fee Structure

Arbutus Ridge water system is not currently a metered water system. User fees are incorporated into the monthly strata bills and there is no parcel tax. the annual users fee for 2023 is $474.80 per property. Current year budget information can be found here.