Warm water enters Nechako from City pumpstation (photo courtesy of City of PG)

Prince George, B.C. -  With the Amphibex heading for home, the City’s Emergency Operations Centre officials are turning to ’Option Two’ in their bid to mitigate flooding on the lower Nechako River.

The contract with Eco Technologies for use of the amphibious excavator expired yesterday.  EOC officials decided not to renew, given that breakaway ice being sent down the Nechako began piling up in the Fraser River on Sunday when its open channel froze. 

’Option Two’ is a Warm Water System (WWS).  The picture above shows warm well water flowing into the Nechako River (at about 5-degrees Celsius) and creating an open channel from the City’s pumphouse on the bank, near the Cameron Street Bridge.  That water has been flowing for about two weeks now.

The main WWS involves a three-kilometre pipeline from Canfor’s Intercon Pulpmill to its intake well on the Nechako riverbank, approximately 2.5-kilometres upstream from its confluence with the Fraser.  Work on the $400-thousand dollar line was completed on Monday and testing of the system began immediately.  Yesterday, hot water (40-degrees Celsius) began running from the mill to the intake well, where it was mixed with cool water to a temperature of about 14-degrees Celsius.  It’s being discharged through a flexible pipe into the open channel on the Nechako.

City Liaison Officer, Kevin Brown says the WWS is expected to help keep the channel open until spring, providing an outlet for ice shifts and water surges that occur further up the river.