“If we can get a day or two of no outdoor water usage, it makes a big difference to our reservoir levels”
The City of Botanical Arts is asking residents nicely: turn off the taps.
Missing last week’s Edmonton rains had an impact on St. Albert’s water reserves, and the city is leading the way to conservation by halting park watering and pool filling.
It’s a hot, dry situation, said Regan Lefebrve, senior manager of utilities.
“Right now, it’s voluntary, but we are asking for help,” Lefebrve said.
City water levels dove by about 25 per cent per day over the weekend, going from 90 per cent to 40 per cent by Monday.
Water demand threshold A is 60 per cent of available storage volume, and the city has crossed over to threshold B, with less than 40 per cent of available storage volume.
The Versailles splash park is non-recirculating, so it’s shut down for the moment. And no more washing dusty buses in the bedroom community on Edmonton’s northwest side for the time being. Rink programming may be affected with rinks not getting filled.
It’s the third such crossover for St. Albert this year, with an equipment failure that occurred in January, and another for a few days around Canada Day.
The figures don’t include fire storage volumes which are held sacrosanct, like a rainy day savings account. If water levels were to drop below that, severe restrictions would ensue, he said.
May and June rains prevented a predicted drought, but now all bets are off.
Rain on the near horizon would be helpful, Lefebrve said.
“They’re saying about five millimetres of rain projected on Wednesday—even that makes a big difference for us,” he said.
“If we can get a day or two of no outdoor water usage, it makes a big difference to our reservoir levels.
“I would say by the end of this week, we’ll be either lifting the water demand B, or moving to a C— it does get better or worse, depending on what happens,” Lefebrve said.
With its high percentage of residential properties, St. Albert has more yards, and higher peaks than many communities.
“We are unique in that we are primarily single-family residential. Communities that have more diversity in the customer (residential/commercial), have an easier time dealing with peak factors,” Lefebvre said.
Average water usage in St. Albert is about 16 cubic meters a month, or 16,000 liters—about 500 litres of water per day, per household, he said.
The good news is water-saving measures like newer shower heads and low-flush toilet designs have reduced the number of litres used in the bathroom, Lefebvre said.
“In 1998 we were about 50,000 people, and now we’re at 70,000, but what’s interesting is our overall water usage has actually gone down,” he said.
“I don’t think the outdoor usage has been reduced as much as the indoor usage has so we still end up with very high peak usage in the summertime.”
Residents can help conserve water by doing the following:
- Use water from rain barrels until they are empty, before using municipal water for outdoor watering.
- Reduce water use, particularly during peak demand periods: 6 to 9 a.m. and 6 to 9 p.m.
- Turn the water off while brushing your teeth.
- Make sure that washing machines and dishwashers are full before using.
- Suspend filling jacuzzis or hot tubs.
- Ensure you have a pitcher of water in the refrigerator for drinking, so you won’t have to let the water run to get cold water.
- Clean your sidewalks and driveways with a broom or brush, rather than a hose.
- Suspend washing vehicles and watering your lawn.
Businesses, particularly those using large volumes of water, are also asked to limit water use.