Crucial action is needed to solve what are deep and systemic challenges tied to Calgary’s water infrastructure that trace back decades, says an independent panel studying the 2024 failure of the city’s key water feeder main.
Its report says the risk of the pipe’s failure was first identified after another feeder main in northeast Calgary ruptured in 2004.
But over the ensuing two decades, the city repeatedly deferred feeder main inspection, monitoring and risk mitigation, the review states.
While the Bearspaw feeder main was repeatedly seen as a high-consequence risk, the perceived low likelihood of its failure often led resources to be directed to other areas, the report says.
The panel’s review lays out several recommendations, including to accelerate work to twin the Bearspaw feeder main by early next year, repair and maintain the current pipe, and establish a dedicated water utility department, supported by a board of independent experts.
Wednesday’s report stressed the urgency of its recommendations, as the pipe is highly vulnerable to future catastrophic failures.
“The panel has traced these gaps to external pressures, risk and asset integrity processes, ineffective management, and a lack of effective governance oversight,” the report reads.
This report was completed before the Bearspaw line broke again on Dec. 30, triggering a new round of city-wide water use reductions.
Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas has said he’s looking to see what immediate steps the report recommends that the city can follow to swiftly replace the Bearspaw feeder main.
Officials recommended the Bearspaw main be inspected in 2017, 2020 and 2022, but none occurred.
Problems in water infrastructure governance persisted across multiple city councils and management teams, the report says, partly because councils lacked the expert support to effectively oversee the system.
Calgary overlooked water system risks for decades, finds report
“I would not lay blame at the foot of any one individual or any one era of council,” panel chair Siegfried Kiefer said on Wednesday. Kiefer is a former ATCO executive.
“This problem existed. It repeated itself. It did not surface to the right level of decision-making. And so it’s very difficult, in my opinion, to lay specific blame on any individual. We had a process weakness that was not corrected. “
The report points to an environment of unclear accountability, with the water utility split across multiple departments. Without a single accountable leader, decisions were often delayed or deprioritized, the report said.
Calgary’s water system is one of the largest and most complex in Canada, the report reads.
Stagnant investment and infrastructure deterioration is a problem across Canada, the report notes. But Calgary’s situation is particularly severe as the fastest-growing major city in the country, with a low density resulting in more kilometres of pipe per resident than any other major Canadian city.
The panel “strongly recommends” accelerating the process of steel pipe duplication within 12 to 14 months, using emergency procurement procedures and while leveraging the expertise of the private sector. It adds that any major questions about the pipe’s design should be settled this month.
The current Bearspaw feeder main should also be maintained, the panel says, to provide redundancy for the city’s water supply.
“It is recognized that execution is complicated by roads and residential development, and that the priority must be on safety as well as innovation and not as much on cost in order to achieve an aggressive timeline,” the report reads.
The panel also recommended establishing a dedicated water utility department, hiring independent experts to provide oversight, and strengthening how the city responds to risks and asset integrity.
The department would be led by a chief operating officer of water, who would be empowered and accountable to make decisions for Calgary’s water network.
It also recommends a stable and predictable revenue base for the department to renew aging assets and maintain the system’s reliability, while ensuring reasonable water service rates.
Utility fees, rather than property taxes, typically pay for water infrastructure. The report didn’t set out what level rates should be at, or any budget figures for expedited repairs.
The panel also recommends the city establish an independent board of experts to offer oversight and advice to city hall. It suggests a board that can offer long-term guidance across leadership cycles.
Interviewees at all levels told the panel that consensus-based decision-making led to a culture of deferral and high risk tolerance, the report says. That input informed the panel’s suggested model of consulting stakeholders and experts, but leaving final accountability to one executive role or city council.
It writes that, taken together, the recommendations would address the “systemic gaps” that led to the water main failure, and would introduce a “culture of accountability and proactive risk management.”
“The panel expects that these reforms can be largely implemented within the next 12 months. The panel strongly advises a mindset of ‘chronic unease’ acting with urgency to address the risks and gaps that we have reported,” the report reads.
The water department should completely transition to a city-owned distinct corporation within three years, the report says.
Wednesday’s report is unrelated to a 600-page engineering report presented to council last December that investigated which factors caused the 2024 break, including soil conditions and microcracks along the pipe. Council is set to learn more about the new report as part of its meeting this afternoon.
