Skip ribbon commands
Skip to main content
Skip Navigation LinksEPCOR / Products & Services / Infrastructure / Projects in Your Area / Rossdale Site - Current Projects / Protecting Edmonton's Water Treatment Plants from Flooding

​Protecting the water supply for 90+ communities

Edmonton water treatment plants flood mitigation project

With the risk of major flooding becoming more uncertain, EPCOR is taking action to protect the water supply for Edmonton and more than 90 surrounding communities. Both of Edmonton’s water treatment plants —​ E.L. Smith and Rossdale —​ are along the North Saskatchewan River floodplain.

We are proposing a project that will lessen the chance of catastrophic damage to the region's treatment plants during a North Saskatchewan River flood and help us resume water treatment as quickly as possible after a flood.
​​​

The Edmonton Water Treatment Plants Flood Mitigation Proje​ct will protect the region's drinking water supply by:

  • Installing flood barriers to protect water treatment equipment, such as transformers and pumps, and below-grade treated water reservoirs
  • Preventing river water from backing up into the plants by installing flood gates into existing plant drainage pipes that discharge to the river
  • Increasing protection to critical assets or relocating them to higher ground within the plants
From 2024–2028, we plan to construct flood barriers that include a combination of grass-covered embankments and flood walls, both topped with security fencing. These barriers were designed with input from Indigenous partners and local communities while meeting technical requirements, reducing the impacts to vegetation and wildlife, and minimizing the cost to ratepayers.​​​


Vegetation management

Regrettably, this project will result in the loss of some trees and vegetation in the area around the barriers at both Water Treatment Plants; however, we have plans in place to a​dd even more area of vegetation than we remove.​

Learn more about our
vegetation management plan​​

Learn more and get involved

On September 5, 2023, our project team will present the project to Edmonton’s Utility Committee. If approved, Utility Committee will refer the project to City Council for the September 12, 2023 Council meeting. However, this date may change.

Find the latest information on the project here:

Note: large files may take several minutes to download​

Next steps​

Following the City’s review process, we will work with Indigenous Nations and local communities to add art and interpretive installations for people to interact with and enjoy, based on their feedback. Watch for more information coming soon about how you can get involved in this engagement process.

We expect to begin construction on the flood barriers in 2024. Although there are key decision points along the way, we will continue to engage with community members and Indigenous Nations throughout the project.

The considerations for flood barriers are different at each water treatment plant.​​​​


​


​Vegetation management

We recognize the concern that the implementation of this project may lead to the loss of some trees and vegetation near the barriers of both Water Treatment Plants.

Rest assured, we have plans in place to replace the removed vegetation with an even larger area of greenery.

​


F​​lood barriers
Rossdale Water Tre​at​​ment Plant

​​View more detai​ls

F​​lood barriers at 
E.L. Smith​ Water Tre​at​​ment Plant

​​View more detai​ls​​​​​​​

Content here

 

Increasing protection to critical assets


All of this work will take place within our fence line and is currentl​y underway. We expect to b​e finished in the fall of 2025.
View more detai​ls

 

Preventing river water from backing up in the region's Water Treatment Plants​


The planning for this work is currently underway and we expect to be complete by 2025. 
     View more detail​s

 

What we’ve heard during community & Indigenous engagement​


Since May 2021, we have conducted public and Indigenous engagement to understand how we can best integrate the required flood barriers into certain locations around the plants. 
     View more detail​s​​​



 

 

Contact us

Your questions, input and feedback are important to us. We want to hear from you so that we can design flood barriers to protect the region's Water Treatment Plants that integrate into your community as much as possible while being mindful of costs.​


​

{{settings.Title}}

{{item.Title}}