By C. Moss

Water security is becoming a larger concern. In most cities water works are well funded and well staffed with professionals who constantly monitor and adjust the safety of the drinking water. Outside of urban areas, a patchwork of small water systems provides water to customers.

All water systems have to keep records and submit water test results to the local Health Authority, in our case to Island Health. Island Health sorts the test results into categories from safe, to water quality advisory, boil water advisory, do not consume advisory, and do not use advisory.

Boil water advisories are usually caused by turbidity levels in the water, but some are caused by inadequate disinfection, aging or broken infrastructure, or poor maintenance. In such cases, boiling most water for a couple of minutes, or adding two drops of bleach to each gallon, will make the water safe for use. If chemical pollution or coliform counts exceed health levels, then the health risks go up to high and a “do not consume” advisory is issued. Okay for irrigation and flushing but don’t use for drinking, cooking, or washing. If toxic chemical pollutants start showing up due to a spill somewhere entering the groundwater, then the “do not use” advisory is issued and it means “DO NOT USE FOR ANYTHING”.

At the end of 2025 on Vancouver Island there were 48 boil water advisories and 1 do not use advisory, not including First Nations which fall under Federal jurisdiction. In BC as of November 30, 2025, 35 First Nation communities had 11 water quality advisories, 18 boil water advisories and 12 do not consume advisories for a total of 41 advisories. In spite of Federal government promises of safe drinking water on First Nation reserves, such advisories have been around for many decades.

Each BC Health Authority seems to have a different way of listing water advisories, so it is hard to compare regional lists. Numbers are also hard to count because some water systems say “affected: 2 to 30 users”, while others will list a number like 132 or just list it as a Strata use without a number. This means that Vancouver Island’s 48 boil water advisories could affect a range from 100 to 1000 or more consumers– each one now worried about the security of their drinking water. For the cafes, restaurants, and camp grounds in the list it means either boiling or storing water for customers or paying for and providing bottled water.

Harvested rainwater for consumption or distribution to a water system would still have to be filtered and processed (usually UV and/or chemicals like chlorine added before distribution to a water system) and regularly tested. However rainwater systems might avoid common problems related to surface water use, ground pollution, water turbidity, and fecal coliform counts. For more information just go to the BC Water Advisory website.