Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 5038
Winnipeg
4/19/2023 at 9:54 PM
Winnipeg gets their water from Shoal Lale in Ontario, and it arrives via aqueduct. The aquaduct was built over 100 years ago and is gravity-fed. The lake is located just east of the MB/ON border and is on the Canadian Shield as part of the Lake of the Woods system. IDK if you've been up that way, but the lakes on the most part are clear. It's among the best tap water in the world, supposedly. Besides chlorination, they have only started having to treat/process it within my lifetime, maybe about 15-20 years ago when they built Deacon's. I distinctly remember being told it was essentially untreated when I was growing up (I grew up in Winnipeg).
The majority of Brandon's water comes from the river (there are also some wells, but the vast vast majority comes from the river). The river is full of sediment, leaves, agricultural runoff and whatever else it picks up while it meanders through SK and MB. They do a decent job treating it, but they are always fighting against what's in it.
Winnipeg 's water isn't perfect - they struggle with manganese in the pipes and lead in older parts - but they have better water to start with. I was actually please with how good Brandon water (usually) tasts when we moved here from Winnipeg. The good news is that this smell usually only lasts a couple of weeks and then it improves. A carbon filter like a Brita and refrigerating the water helps I find.