Small Water Systems Resources

Emergency Response Plan

The Safe Drinking Water Regulation of the Health Act requires all purveyors of small water systems to have an emergency response plan in case of a threat to public health. The BCWWA has developed a best management practices document to assist water systems in prepared an emergency response plan. As referenced in this BMP the province has developed a handbook which can assist operators of small waterworks systems to develop their own emergency response plan to help protect water system users in the event of an emergency. This is a comprehensive, easy to follow, guide to planning for emergencies so personnel can respond to situations should they arise.
http://www.healthservices.gov.bc.ca/protect/pdf/PHI061.PDF

Water System Screening and Assessment

Assessment of water systems is a primary tool in the successful operation of any water system. A multi-barrier approach to the assessment and protection of your water supply is the best way to assure long term, quality drinking water.

The initial step in completing a water system assessment is to complete a screening survey. The provincial government has developed a screening tool that is available at the following link. This document will be indispensable in the planning and understanding of your water supply and distribution system. Once you have completed this survey please review the results with your Drinking Water Officer and/or your professional consultant. Based on the results of the survey the Drinking Water Officer may require additional investigation through a more detailed formal water system assessment. If you have been advised that this is required for your system we recommend contacting your Drinking Water Officer in order to confirm the scope of this assessment.

http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/protect/pdf/

BC_Drinking_Water_Screening_Tool.pdf

Well Head Protection Toolkit

The Well Protection Toolkit is a joint publication of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. This toolkit provides information on BC Legislation and resources available. The toolkit is designed to walk small water communities through a six-step process to develop, implement and monitor a well protection plan.

A water supply can be kept safe and provide excellent water quality as long as protection of that supply is included in your planning. This toolkit provides a full package of information and all the "how to" a well water system will need to comply with the Permit to Operate.
http://wlapwww.gov.bc.ca/wat/gws/well_protection/acrobat.html

Insurance and Risk

Small water systems in BC have faced numerous challenges when it comes to obtaining affordable and appropriate insurance for their water systems. The BCWWA Small Water Systems Committee made a valuable contribution to the development by the Sustainable Infrastructure Society of an innovative Group Liability Insurance Program. The Program is accessible through the web site of the Sustainable Infrastructure Society at: www.SustainIS.org

Best Management Practices

In 2001, the federal government, through its Infrastructure Canada Program and the National Research Council joined forces with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to create the National Guide to Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure. The development of the Guide through Government of Canada support is fostering the creation of an extensive municipal infrastructure network of excellence. The guide - a collaborative effort between the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the National Research Council - provides decision-making and investment-planning tools and a compendium of technical best practices. www.infraguide.gc.ca

As at testament to the role BCWWA plays in its mandate to safeguard public health and the environment, we were asked by the Ministry of Health to develop a set of Best Management Practice Guidelines (BMPs) in the areas our members operate in. These guides will identify and disseminate best practices while encouraging innovation to support sustainable municipal infrastructure decisions and actions. The BMP’s are “made in British Columbia” models drawing largely on the contemporary practices and standards of the American Waterworks Association. Each BMP incorporates relevant characteristics and topical information geared to British Columbia conditions & usage.

BCWWA Technical Committees and/or BC based technical experts have been engaged to provide relevant input and knowledge in the preparation of the BMPs and much of the work has been carried out by the BCWWA office.

Best management practices (or best practices) are proactive and often voluntary practical methods applied to business and operational processes or programs to help achieve management objectives. While best practice methodologies are used by vastly different organizations for a variety purposes, they have one thing in common - they emphasize “practice” rather than “theory.” Ironically, recommended best practices may not actually be the “best,” but rather “proven” or “working.” And best practices are always changing as new and better ways of doing things are introduced.

BMPs http://www.bcwwa.org/bmp/index.php

Manufacturers, Suppliers and Consultants

BCWWA encourages Manufacturers, Suppliers & Consultants (MSC) in the water & waste industries to register as members of the Association and to provide a brief description of their products and/or services. We maintain a list of these contacts for anyone interested in finding MSC members associated with the Association.

http://www.bcwwa.org/msclinks.php

The Province of BC is also in the process of compiling a list of suppliers and consultants for small water systems. Once this database becomes available a link will be provided here to the site.

A good resource of information on product manufacturers in the USA can be found at www.usabluebook.com.

SWUABC 'Guide to Online Resources for SWS'

The Small Water Users Association of BC have created a “Guide To Online Resources for Small Water Systems”. This useful reference guide helps direct readers through the large amount of information that is available online for Small Water Systems.

http://www.smallwaterusers.com/publications.htm

BC Small Community Infrastructure Sustainability Site

The Ministry of Community Services, in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Environment, have commenced the development of a webpage dedicated to Small Community Infrastructure, with the ultimate goal of creating a portal, or single point of contact, for information related to smaller community and smaller system issues. The page will be able to address drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater/rainwater management, inclusive of related subject areas such as groundwater, energy efficiency, First Nations issues, etc. The site has been designed to be user friendly, simple, and will hopefully become recognized as a valuable tool by small system operators/managers etc.

http://bc.smallcommunityinfrastructure.ca/

Other Resources

The Water Bucket

The Water Sustainability Committee (WSC) of the BC Water and Waste Association (BCWWA) is a broad-based, informal coalition of people who have diverse backgrounds and experience in water resource management and related disciplines. The vision of WaterBucket.ca is to provide a resource rich, highly interactive “destination location” website for information and communication related to water sustainability in the Province of B.C.

http://www.stewardshipcanada.ca/communities/
waterbucket/home/wbcIndexSP.asp

Small Water Systems in the USA

The structure of the water industry in the United States plays a prominent role in the ability of small systems to comply with the Safe Drinking Water Act. The water industry in the U.S. is considered to be a rising cost industry, meaning that as more regulations to enhance public health protection go into effect, the cost of providing safe drinking water in compliance with those added regulations will increase. In conjunction with more and tighter regulations, public water systems must also bear routine costs of facility operation and maintenance, as well as any needed infrastructure improvements. Information regarding small US water systems is available on

http://www.epa.gov/ogwdw/smallsys.html

The US National Environmental Services Center (NESC) has assembled information about protecting small drinking water systems against potential threats at: http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/ndwc/ndwc_protect.htm

The NESC site for Operators Information is:
http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/ndwc/ndwc_operators.htm

The Small System Resource Center, a web page with technical, managerial, and financial capacity information, what we call the "cool stuff" from AWWA, EPA and many service providers. Check it out on the Small System web page. http://www.awwa.org/science/sun/links/