Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Halifax is the capital and primate city in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Via the local utility, Halifax Water, the city relies on surface water resources from the Pockwock Lake, Lake Major, and Bennery Lake watersheds. While each watershed is a designated protected water area, water quality is a concern, particularly with rising levels of chlored, arsenic, and aluminum. Residents in Halifax pay among the lowest rates for water and wastewater in Canada, an average of CAD 841/year (USD 627). Halifax Water has plans to upgrade its water supply and wastewater treatment infrastructure under a 10-year plan that accounts for climate change and supports adaptation to a changing climate. The city is ranked among the best mid-sized cities in Canada and is known for being a liveable city.
Key Information: Halifax is the capital and primate city of the province of Nova Scotia and is home to approximately 350,000 people in the urban core and close to 420,000 in the broader metropolitan area (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2023; Macro Trends, 2023). Halifax has been seeing a population growth rate of between 0.5-0.7% annually (Macro Trends, 2023). The city is centrally located on the Halifax peninsula and is located nearly halfway between the Equator and the North Pole, giving it a relatively mild oceanic climate (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2023). The regional municipality consists of four former municipalities that were amalgamated in 1996: Halifax, Dartmouth, Bedford, and Halifax County. Halifax is the economic centre for Atlantic Canada and resource industries found in rural areas of the regional municipality including agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry, and natural gas extraction (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2023). The Pockwock Lake, Lake Major, and Bennery Lake watersheds supply water to 99.95% of Halifax Water’s customers (Halifax Water, n.d.). Each watershed has a designated protected water area (PWA) associated with them (Halifax Water, n.d.). Water quality in lakes is a concern for Halifax, particularly rising levels of chloride, arsenic, and aluminum, which could be due to increasing urban development (Lam, 2023). Moreover, it is not uncommon for water from Halifax taps to have an odour and be discoloured, due to geosmin and naturally occurring minerals (primarily iron and manganese), respectively (Halifax Water, n.d.).
Water Assessment:
Economics/Finance: The urban area of Halifax is a major economic centre in eastern Canada and is one of the largest container ports in Canada in terms of volume of cargo handled. Agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry, and natural gas extraction are major resource industries found in the rural areas of the municipality. Halifax Water, an autonomous, self-financed utility, manages approximately CAD 1.4 billion in assets with an estimated replacement value of CAD 4 billion (Halifax Water, n.d.). Halifax Water’s rates are based on the cost of providing services and the utility operates on a break-even basis but there is no component of profit built into the rates (Halifax Water, n.d.). The cost of service structure is also approved by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (NSUARB) to ensure that consumers receive safe and reliable service at a reasonable price (NSUARB, n.d.; Halifax Water, n.d.). Halifax Water aims to charge some of the lowest rates in Canada, costing residents an average of CAD 841/year for water and wastewater (Halifax Water).
Politics/Governance: There are a number of relevant laws, legislation, regulations, and bylaws at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels. At the federal level, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act supports the protection of the environment and human health. At the provincial level, the Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Climate Change is responsible for regulating water utilities under the provincial Environment Act (Halifax Water, n.d.). The Environment Act allows water utilities to designate an area of a water supply as a Protected Water Area (PWA) and to regulate activities that may impair source water quality (Halifax Water, n.d.). At the municipal level, Halifax Water, the utility providing water, wastewater, and stormwater services, also enforces regulations in the designated PWAs (Halifax Water, n.d.). Moreover, under the Municipal Government Act (MGA), municipalities are bestowed the power to make bylaws to protect drinking water supply areas (Halifax Water, n.d.).
Ecological/Natural Science: Halifax has an eastern-maritime climate, with a short, warm summer, a cold winter, and year-round precipitation (CITATION). In recent years, Halifax has been battered by major storms, wildfires, and flooding (Ryan, 2023). To support climate action, the city implemented a climate change plan, HalifACT, in 2020 with the aim to have a net-zero economy by 2050, funded by a climate action tax on residents’ property tax bills (Ryan, 2023). As the city relies on surface water resources and, as a coastal city, is surrounded by water, Halifax places emphasis on testing water quality for bacteria and mineral levels. Naturally occurring minerals (primarily iron and manganese) in the water are typically to blame for water discolouration (Halifax Water, n.d.).
Technical Science/Infrastructure: Halifax Water manages 1571 km of water mains, 1424 km of wastewater sewers, and 878 km of stormwater sewers (Halifax Water, n.d.). They also operate two major water supply plants and six modern smaller community supply plants to provide water to over 360,000 customers throughout the Halifax Municipality (Halifax Water, n.d.). As part of its Water Supply Enhancement Program, Halifax Water has implemented a 10-year program to upgrade the two major water supply plants and designs are currently underway (Halifax Water, n.d.). The Program takes climate change into account and supports adaptation to a changing climate to help to ensure that customers continue to have access to high quality drinking water (Halifax Water, n.d.). There are also other climate change adaptation and mitigation projects under HalifACT, a long-term climate change plan to reduce emissions and support the transition to a net-zero economy by 2050 (Halifax, 2023; Ryan, 2023).
Social Science: In 2021/22, Halifax was ranked in the top ten among mid-sized cities for Best Human Capital and Lifestyle and is known for being a more affordable city to live, compared to other cities in Canada (Halifax Partnership, 2023). There is an opportunity to continue to work on improving water and energy conservation. More than two-thirds of municipal water is used for activities that don’t require drinking-quality water (Nova Scotia, 2010).
