Whitehorse drinking water path

Source

Riverdale / Selkirk Aquifer (Yukon River–recharged groundwater) Groundwater · +1 sources

raw water

Intake

Municipal wells groundwater pumping

to plant

Treatment

Selkirk Pumphouse chlorination

finished

Mains

Distribution Municipal piped system is supplied from roughly seven Riverdale Aquifer production wells. Water is chlorinated at Selkirk Pumphouse and monitored continuously there plus weekly at many distribution sites. Some residents use private wells or trucked tank water outside the piped system.

drinking water

Tap

Household tap Whitehorse

Source & supply
Riverdale / Selkirk Aquifer (Yukon River–recharged groundwater)
Schwatka Lake (historic primary source; potential future backup after treatment upgrades)
Municipal piped system is supplied from roughly seven Riverdale Aquifer production wells. Water is chlorinated at Selkirk Pumphouse and monitored continuously there plus weekly at many distribution sites. Some residents use private wells or trucked tank water outside the piped system.
City switched from Schwatka Lake surface water to exclusive groundwater by 2010. Recent GUDI (groundwater under direct influence of surface water) findings are driving multi-barrier treatment upgrades that could again allow Schwatka Lake use as a redundant source.
Treatment
Selkirk Pumphouse
Central Riverdale facility where production-well water receives sodium hypochlorite disinfection before distribution; currently the sole municipal treatment step.
Treatment on record: chlorination
At the tap
Hardness 124 mg/L (Hard)
Grade A (Excellent)
pH 7.7 · lead 0.4 μg/L
ECCC / municipal open data (seed)