Water Rates and Billing
Town of Lunenburg Water Utility Rates and Regulations are approved by the Nova Scotia Utilities Review Board (“NSURB”) and can be viewed at Lunenburg pdf Water Rates and Regulations 2022 (852 KB) .
Water accounts are billed quarterly in March, June, September and December and are due at the end of the next month.
Payment options include pre-authorized payment, cash, debit, cheque, post-dated cheque, telephone/internet banking or payment at your branch of most Canadian financial institutions. The Town does not accept credit card payments.
The pre-authorized debit for Taxes and Sewer requires a separate pdf authorization (21 KB) .
pdf Town of Lunenburg Account Payment Options (112 KB)
Property owners requiring new or upgraded water services should contact the Town Engineer at 634-8992 ext. 2, or Public Works Superintendent at 634-8992, ext. 1, to make arrangements and fee inquiries.
Existing customers seeking to connect or disconnect their water service should contact the Finance Department at the Town Hall at 634-4410. Connection and disconnect charges apply.
Water Utility Supply
Dares Lake is located 4 km from the Town of Lunenburg in the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg. It provides an abundant supply of clean water with a yield of 3,000,000 gallons approx. per day during a dry season. Water flows by gravity from Dares Lake through two cast iron pipes, one 6" and one 24" through an intake chamber, screen house and pumping station located 62' above mean sea level, 550' from the lake. Water is pumped to the Water Treatment Plant located at 524 Northwest Road.
Infrastructure History
The Lunenburg Water and Electric Light, Heating and Power Company Limited was incorporated under Chapter 117 of the Nova Scotia Acts of 1888. In 1895 it acquired lands and water rights to construct and operate a commercial and residential water distribution system in and around Lunenburg. On August 22, 1896, the Lunenburg Board of Trade petitioned the Lunenburg Town Council to purchase the Company’s waterworks system. Council agreed and offered $65,000, which the Company rejected. The Company eventually agreed to sell for $90,000. on November 15, 1902. Council borrowed an additional $15,000. to extend and upgrade the water system. A 700,000-gallon open reservoir was constructed near the Northwest highway 212' above sea level to provide additional storage in the distribution system.
In 1941, increasing commercial water demands required the installation of a booster pump on the main supply line. This served to maintain pressure at higher elevations. It was built along the Northwest highway between the open reservoir and the Town boundary. It was later converted to a chlorination facility in 1958.
Chlorine and lime feed equipment were installed in the main pumping station in 1965 to disinfect and increase the water alkalinity.
In 1968, a 750,000-gallon steel water tank was built on Hospital Hill Road in Garden Lots to provide additional storage in the distribution system and water required by High Liner Foods to meet their increased production requirements.
Flow proportional chlorine equipment was installed in 1990. It allowed chlorine to be added to the distribution system based on the water volume pumped to the Town.
The Utility’s original water distribution system was primarily constructed of cast iron pipe. Since the 1970s, the Utility has been replacing these older cast iron pipes with cement-lined ductile iron (CLDI) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes to improve water quality and increase fire flows.
On June 10, 2009, the Lunenburg Town Council awarded a $6.8 Million contract to Mid Valley Construction for the construction of a new water treatment plant and system upgrades to meet new Provincial Surface Water Treatment Standards. Improvements at the Water Utility pump house included three new pumps, variable speed drives to optimize energy use and a new roof. The new Water Treatment Plant uses membrane filtration with enhanced coagulation for organics removal to provide a peak production rate of 5,400 m3/d. Water is fed to the distribution system by gravity from the new reservoir, reducing energy use associated with treated water pumping. The membrane filtration recovers 95% of raw water flows, significantly reducing the daily volume of wastewater when compared to conventional filtration. Wastewater flows by gravity to the Town’s wastewater collection system and is treated at the Town's sewage treatment plant.
A new glass-lined bolted reservoir was constructed next to the Water Treatment Plant to replace an existing open reservoir. The new reservoir incorporates a central fixed volume chlorine contact tank and an outer ring for water storage requirements. The project also includes a remote chlorine monitoring and dosing station located at the existing Garden Lots standpipe at the far end of the distribution system.
The new Water Treatment Plant was officially opened in September 2010. It received the Atlantic Canada Water and Wastewater Association “2010 Project of the Year Award”.
Water Treatment Plant Opening Ceremony, September 2010
