Key projects, priorities, and challenges posed by providing a vital source of water for the greater region were highlighted recently as the Pembina Valley Water Co-op (PVWC) held its annual meeting.
Co-chairs of the PVWC board Don Wiebe of the RM of Rhineland and Peter Froese of the RM of Stanley suggested that 2025 was a very productive and eventful year.
A highlight was the provincial announcement of a $22 million capital support grant.
“This grant will be used toward our capital plan to increase our capacity and to produce more potable water across the entire region,” they wrote in their report.
Meanwhile, detailed design for the new Letellier membrane plant has begun with a projected completion date for 2028, and they are also optimistic that the new river intake at Letellier will be completed this spring.
And as far as the financial side of things goes, the volume of water sales and approximated budget projections were on target, while the operating costs were under budget.
“This, along with the municipal contributions, strengthens our financial position,” Froese and Wiebe said.
CEO Dale Toews touched on a number of key areas for the PVWC, beginning with the state of the water supply for the region.
“At this time, we don’t have spring supply concerns for both the Stephenfield Lake or the Red River. What the summer and fall will look like right now is unclear,” he said. “From a water supply stand point, we don’t need the high river flows but rather we need the steady river flows throughout the year.
“It is important for us to get the steady rains through summer to fill the dugouts, ponds and private wells so folks can continue using their own raw water sources for livestock and outdoor usage,” he added. “When the raw water dugouts and other sources aren’t available, we see folks start pulling from our system and that can put a tremendous strain on it.”
Toews also touched on some key considerations around seasonal water demands.
“Spring demand is something we will be working on again this year as the agricultural spraying, livestock, gardening and summer pool filling can create challenges for us,” he said “There are those couple of weeks in spring, typically mid-May through to the end of June, that we see a very sharp and very significant demand in water which puts an enormous strain on our entire network.
“The municipalities have been very helpful in helping us get the message out to the public, which is to spread out your high water usage from mid-May to the end of June. Fill your pools early in the year, wash your house earlier in the season, and spread out your landscape watering,” Toews said. “The more we can spread that high demand out, it takes the strain off the system.”
Toews went on to touch on their key capital projects.
“Construction of the new intake at Letellier has moved slower than we anticipated,” he said, adding they are now anticipating this work to be completed midway through 2026. “This is an important project for us as it places the intake in a location in the river that should improve our ability to access water in low flows.
“The new membrane treatment plant in Letellier is moving along nicely,” he shared. “Significant design work has already been completed, and we are working on getting formal contracts issued … so we are looking at a 2028 completion date for that project.
“This will increase our treatment capacity significantly and really help take the edge off during peak usage seasons.”
Toews also credited the staff and people who are involved in making the PVWC work and continue to provide safe and secure sources of water.
“It is no secret that our raw water sources—the Red River and Stephenfield Lake—are challenging. The water chemistry in both sources are continually changing, and so our team at PVWC is continually adjusting how they perform their work,” he said. “We are fortunate to have the talented and committed people we have here at PVWC working tirelessly to ensure we have safe clean water.”
The PVWC is owned by 14 municipalities and is supplying water to over 65,000 people across southern Manitoba. It works with over 400 kilometres of water pipelines over a 9,000 square kilometre service area with 888 million gallons of water distributed and $10 million worth of water sold across the region.
