Drinking Water Safety Plan

A drinking water safety plan is a proactive method of assessing risk to drinking water quality, which better protects public health. Plans are based on an assessment of risk factors that could potentially adversely affect drinking water quality. Assessments consider such things as:

  • The source of the water;
  • How drinking water is treated; and
  • How treated water is stored and distributed.

These plans do not replace the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality or the drinking water monitoring and reporting requirements under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act. Rather, drinking water safety plans are meant to complement and enhance drinking water quality standards and procedures. An effective drinking water safety plan is dependent on four principals:

  • Collecting and evaluating the best information available about the water supply system
  • Analyzing and understanding potential risks
  • Correctly assessing risk mitigation – how to reduce risks to an acceptable level
  • Determining what resources and actions are necessary to ensure identified risks are reduced

Alberta Environment and Water has developed a template and supplemental guidance documents to assist operators in the preparation of drinking water safety plans. These plans are another tool that operators can use to help ensure the quality of water delivered to consumers is consistently good. Guidance documents and a drinking water template are provided. Additional information about the value of drinking water safety plans and how to compile an effective plan can be found in the guidance documents.

For more information, please contact: Alberta Environment and Water at aenv.dwsp@gov.ab.ca

The water quality information on this website is collected by Alberta Environment and Parks under regulatory requirements to operate a waterworks system. This is public information, however, it is not the most current available in time due to reporting schedules. Most information here is 30 to 60 days previous, and older.

You are advised to contact either your water provider or Alberta Health Services to determine current water quality for your waterworks system, specifically if there are any advisories in place. If available, service provider contact information and websites are available under the Contact Information link (at the top) once you select a waterworks system.

The materials on this site are provided "as is" without warranties or conditions of any kind either expressed or implied. To the fullest extent possible under applicable law, the Government of Alberta disclaims all warranties and conditions, expressed or implied, including but not limited to, implied warranties or conditions of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement or other violation of rights. The Government of Alberta does not warrant or make any other representations regarding the use, accuracy, timelines, applicability, performance, security, availability or reliability of this website or any sites linked to this site, or the results from the use of this website or any sites linked to this website, or otherwise respecting the materials on this website or any sites linked to this website.