This brings the municipality one step closer to starting to pump water from a nearby lake, referred to as Unnamed Lake or Qikiqtalik Lake, to fill the water reservoir in Geraldine Lake before it freezes. The city still needs approval from the Nunavut Water Board before pumping can begin. Amy Elgersma, the city’s chief administrative officer and emergency management coordinator, told the city council Friday that the reservoir needs to hold about 413,000 cubic meters to have enough water for the winter. This is more than double the current amount. Lake Geraldine, which supplies the city of Iqaluit, is located above the city near the power plant. (David Gunn/CBC) Deputy Mayor Solomon Awa asked if additional pumping would be required to meet the water deficit. He also told the council that the body of water they referred to as Unnamed Lake is actually known as Qikiqtalik in Inuktitut. Elgersma thanked Awa for giving the right name to the lake and said that it has the right volume to fill the reservoir, which the studies confirm. Coun. Kyle Sheppard asked if the city would require more infrastructure to pump the required volume of water. The city can only pump for another two months, meaning it will need to move twice as much water as it has so far this summer. Elgersma said the city has all the necessary infrastructure and councilors have determined it can replenish the low levels within 40 days or less if there is significant rainfall. Pipelines have already been installed in Qikiqtalik Lake. These would channel water into the Apex River, which would then be channeled, as it already is, into the reservoir. This is the same as what happened in 2019. The city expects to pump over 500 million liters of water. The move will not affect the quality of drinking water the city can provide. The Council voted unanimously to declare a state of emergency, which allows pumping from another body of water. Elgersma said the latest they would start pumping would be Sept. 1. The city has been warning residents to conserve water since May, but water shortages have been affecting Iqaluit since 2018. In April, the federal government announced $214 million in funding to upgrade the city’s water distribution system. “I feel like some of my gray hair might turn brown again,” Iqaluit Mayor Kenny Bell said at the time. The money will fund a new reservoir to be built next to Lake Geraldine. Coun. Shepard said the situation underscores how important it is to keep the public informed about the state of emergency. He said people are used to the same messages and don’t recognize the seriousness. “We need new messages about the water conversation in the community outside,” he said. “We need to save water … and really emphasize to our residents how important this is.”
