The City of Kelowna is implementing stage one water restrictions for all customers on the City of Kelowna Water Utility and the Southeast Kelowna water supply systems.
The city says the restrictions are to ensure that water is not wasted and that delivery systems can keep up with the demand for drinking water, irrigation, commercial use and firefighting.
“Stage one conservation efforts require all water users to be mindful of the water they use, in order to reduce overall demand by 10 per cent,” utility services manager Kevin Van Vliet said on Friday.
The city has provided a list of conditions on stage one restrictions:
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- Properties with an odd number address may water yards and lawns on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays; even address numbers may water on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. No properties are to water on Mondays.
- Automatic underground irrigation systems may run between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m., up to three days per week. For example, an odd-numbered home can water anytime between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Thursday and/or Saturday.
- Manual sprinklers and handheld sprinkling (with a spring-loaded nozzle on hose or a with a watering can) can occur between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. or 7 p.m. and midnight on the assigned day, up to three days per week.
The city says citizens should avoid any watering between peak hours of 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The province has also declared drought level three, in which they say there are potentially serious ecosystem or socio-economic impacts possible.
The drought declaration from the province is the result of below-average snowpack and low precipitation levels this spring.
Van Vliet said “should the hot and dry weather and high water demand continue through the next few weeks, the city utility will need to consider stage two restrictions, which implements more drastic reduction in consumption.”
For more information on watering restrictions, visit the City of Kelowna’s website.
For more information on drought in B.C., click here.
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