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Function Junction set to power up new water system

Pricey system will address water quality issues, says top health officer

Function Junction’s boil water advisory may be lifted by the end of April if installation of a $100,000 water filtration system goes as planned, according to the system’s operator.

"It’s going to be state of the art," said Jon Perrett, owner of Van West Water Utility, which maintains the system for 37 Function Junction lots or suites. A boil-water advisory has been in place for eight months since routine tests showed unacceptable total coliform and fecal coliform counts. Van West did not have a disinfection system in place at the time, but the area’s top environmental health officer said the new three-stage system will address the water quality issues found in some of the sampling analysis."

Bob Weston, chief environmental officer for the Sea to Sky area, said the three-stage system includes prefiltration, ultraviolet disinfection and chlorination, providing a multi-barrier disinfection that can deal with viruses, bacteria and parasites.

"The chlorination not only provides a level of disinfection but also provides a residual of chlorination in the distribution in case any contaminants are introduced and will prevent re-growth of bacteria in the system," Weston said.

Weston anticipates the system, designed by BI Pure Water of Langley, should receive final approval by a public health engineer shortly. Permits will then be issued so Van West can begin construction.

If permits are issued within the next week Perrett said Function Junction water users could be utilizing the new system by the end of the month. But he warns the pure water comes at a cost.

"Water rates will go up a little," Perrett said. "I have to recover it somehow – it’s a lot of money."