Think twice before you flush 聴 that聮s what Tofino residents are being told as the town attempts to conserve water amid continued dry conditions.
The town聮s chief administrative officer Bob Long has announced a new daily water consumption target of 400,000 gallons.
In order to meet this target, Long says, residents should turn off the tap when brushing their teeth, shut off the water while lathering in the shower, and reuse towels to minimize laundry.
Tofino聮s current daily water use fluctuates between 250,000 to 460,000 gallons.
If the town is unable to meet this target, Long wrote in a press release, the district will consider 聯further measures.聰
The town is currently already facing stage-two water restrictions banning all outdoor watering and any water use between 3 and 6 p.m.
Stage three restrictions could see the town restricting shower and washer use, as well as possibly placing port-a-potties in neighbourhoods to reduce the use of residential washrooms.
Three years ago, a severe water shortage prompted the town to order all local businesses to close, forcing hotels to turn away vacationers days before the busy Labour Day weekend. In the end, water was trucked in to prevent the closures.
Tofino mayor John Fraser said yesterday he wasn聮t worried about being caught unprepared in another shortage, but he is concerned about usage.
聯As long as we stay within the 400,000 gallon guideline, we should be OK,聰 Fraser said.
聯This target is just about trying to keep it transparent about the amount of water we have and the amount we聮re using.聰
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CHEK News is reporting that some south Island farmers are using municipal water for their crops because their reservoris and wells have gone dry.
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Residents from Lantzville to Campbell River are being asked to let their lawns and gardens go brown so that water will keep flowing through their household taps.
The 3,700 residents of Lantzville, north of Nanaimo, are banned from outdoor watering to protect water supplies for drinking and fire protection. With the Island going through a hot spell, the aquifer the district depends on for water "is lower than it's been in a very, very, very long time," said Mayor Colin Haime. Getting tough appears to be working, said Haime -- pumps that carry water from the aquifer are no longer labouring 24 hours a day.
The problem in Campbell River isn't the supply but that the flow can't keep up with the demand, said Jennifer Brunn, district spokeswoman. Five lakes provide ample water for the 31,000 residents, said Brunn, but the pipes -- which range from 50 to 75 centimetres in diameter -- are too small to deliver water fast enough.
The district fills two reservoirs when demand is low to meet the need during peak-use periods. Wednesday evening, both reservoirs ran dry. "We ran out of water and were not able to fill them up again," said Brunn. "That's a big problem for us."
Campbell River has never had to ban outdoor water use before, so this should serve as a wake-up call, Brunn said. "People are trying to save their grass. They are just watering non-stop."
The district plans to build a third reservoir next year but building reservoirs is an expensive solution, Brunn said. "The community has to ask itself if we want to spend billions of dollars to build bigger reservoirs or do we want to just conserve a bit of water in the heat?"
The Regional District of Comox/Strathcona banned outdoor watering last week across a swath of mid-91原创 Island. Tofino residents and vacationers are dealing with a similar ban, which includes washing of vehicles and boats. They're also being asked not to use water between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., "except where absolutely necessary."
Other Island municipalities are feeling the heat but conditions are not as dire.
Greater Victoria's reservoir is filled to 68.5 per cent of capacity, down from 80 per cent this time last year, said Jan Van Niekerk, spokesman for the Greater Victoria Water District.
A dryer winter meant the reservoir came into spring 10 per cent lower than last year and the hot, dry summer also has had an impact. Greater Victoria residents will remain on stage-one restrictions, limiting lawn watering for now, said Van Niekerk.
People who rely on wells in Greater Victoria still seem to have enough supply, said Jeff Spears, owner of Waterworks Bulk Water Delivery. Normally, wells start to go dry in mid-August, said Spears. A prolonged drought could spell trouble and Spears predicts "a pretty wicked fall for people on wells."
The dry weather is expected to continue, said Anne McCarthy, specialist with Environment Canada. "I don't see any end in sight to the warm to hot, dry pattern."
