Update: June 2, 2014
Juneau’s water supply is just about back to normal.
Salmon Creek reservoir is again part of the system. Over the weekend, the Salmon Creek water storage tank was filled and is now pushing water out to Mendenhall Valley reservoirs.
Salmon Creek was off line the last three weeks, due to sediment in the water. Valley reservoirs have been low, prompting the city to ask residents to conserve water.
The city and borough lifted that request Monday morning, with the reminder to monitor consumption. Don’t allow faucets to run if water is not being used.
Original story: May 30, 2014
Juneau residents should continue to conserve water this weekend.
But by next week, things should be back to normal, says CBJ Public Works Director Kirk Duncan.
Turbidity in Salmon Creek has dropped and the reservoir will soon be part of the city water system again. Duncan says the water division started filling the the 2.3-million gallon Salmon Creek storage tank on Friday.
“It’ll take over the weekend to fill that up and that will start pushing more water out to the other valley reservoirs, so we anticipate Monday we should be in pretty good shape,” he says.
In the meantime, Duncan says, the reservoirs that feed the Mendenhall Valley are still lower than he likes. He hopes residents will continue to voluntarily conserve water until Salmon Creek is pumping water into the system.
Duncan admits there’s no crisis, but says a major event, such as a fire in the valley, could create one.
