Nanaimo's water system is operated on a self-sustaining basis, with current water rates and development charges covering usage, maintenance, new capital projects, and administration. Water rates are set at an expanding block rate to encourage water conservation.
From the South Fork Dam, the water supply travels through parallel pipelines. The smaller of the two (a 750 mm diameter steel pipe) was constructed in 1954 and supplies up to 50,000 cubic meters of water per day. As demand increased, a second larger pipeline (a 1,200 mm diameter steel pipe) was constructed in sections, on an as-needed basis. Completed in 1993, this pipeline increased the volume capacity to 240,000 cubic meters per day. Keeping pace with Nanaimo’s growth and increased requirements for water, the Jump Creek Dam was constructed above the South Fork in the early 1970’s. Floodgates were added to the dam’s spillway, which increased storage by 50%, to a total of 17 million cubic meters.