SASKWATER PARTNERSHIP WITH SUMA SERVES 100TH COMMUNITY

This month, Shellbrook became the 100th community to benefit from the Water System Assessment project provided through a partnership between the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA), Consulting Engineers of Saskatchewan (CES) and SaskWater.

As part of Saskatchewan's Safe Drinking water strategy, all municipal water systems in the province regulated by Saskatchewan Environment must complete a Waterworks System Assessment by December 31st, 2005. Waterworks assessments involve site inspections and a technical report assessing raw water supply, pumps, pipelines, treatment processes, distribution systems and the ability of these waterworks to comply with regulatory standards.

As a cost saving option for communities, SUMA hired SaskWater to be the technical Project Manager of a Waterworks System Assessment Project. Participation is available to all waterworks owners of the approximately 500 waterworks systems in the province.

"I am pleased with the success of the project," Minister responsible for SaskWater Peter Prebble said. "The partnership and tendering process has resulted in cost savings ranging from $200-$2500 for individual participating communities. The assessments have been performed by qualified Saskatchewan engineers through a proposal process managed by SaskWater. SaskWater has a Memorandum of Understanding with CES and a partnership with SUMA and this project has served to strengthen both those relationships and produce win-win opportunities for communities and private engineering firms, in the pursuit of Saskatchewan's safe drinking water strategy.

SaskWater, the provincial Crown water utility, provides competitively-priced, customer-focussed, quality water and wastewater services to Saskatchewan communities.

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For More Information, Contact:

Felechia Brodie SaskWater Moose Jaw Phone: (306) 694-3940