(Edmonton, AB) January 8, 2026: Calgary’s independent report on the Bearspaw South Feeder Main reveals years of failures in managing the city’s water system – including key decisions and delays made while Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi was mayor.
As Nenshi bragged about his record as the city’s chief elected official in his year-end interviews, Calgarians were boiling water and cutting back on usage because he didn’t do the basics: keep infrastructure safe and reliable.
“This report is damning,” said Chestermere-Strathmore MLA Chantelle de Jonge, whose riding is also impacted by the feeder main. “Calgarians and all Albertans deserve leadership that safeguards essential services with planning and accountability. If Nenshi couldn’t manage the city’s water system, how can anyone trust him to manage an entire province?”
Some of the biggest mistakes happened to the feeder main between 2010 and 2021 when Nenshi was mayor:
- 2011: The city weakened its water system to save money by lowering safety standards.
- 2015: Experts warned Calgary to improve oversight and accountability – nothing changed.
- 2017 & 2020: Important safety checks on the high-risk water main were delayed.
- 2021: The city reversed its earlier decision on safety standards, but the fixes still weren’t done.
Nenshi’s poor decisions led to disaster. In June 2024, the Bearspaw water main burst, forcing months of citywide restrictions. Then, just weeks ago, another break hit the same system. The truth is clear: the problems were never fixed under Nenshi, and years of neglect under his watch keeps putting Calgary’s water at risk.
“Nenshi spent 11 years running Calgary into the ground,” added Calgary-East MLA Peter Singh. “Instead of ensuring the city had a reliable supply of water in its taps, he spent the tax dollars of hardworking Calgarians on a 20 per cent pay raise and blue-ring art projects, leaving disaster in his wake and everyone else to clean up his mess.”
“He did it to Calgary – and he’d do it to Alberta, too.”
United Conservatives will always stand up for transparency, accountability, and leadership that delivers for Alberta families and communities.
