Heavy rains forecast in the coming days in the Vancouver area likely won't affect strict water restrictions, which are expected to remain in effect well into September and possibly longer, the regional district says.
Faced with an unusually hot and dry summer, municipalities across the Lower Mainland have been under Stage 3 water restrictions – the second-highest level on the scale – since mid-July, which have prohibited residents from watering their lawns, refilling swimming pools or washing their cars.
Metro Vancouver, which sets water restrictions for the region, says the watering limits have been a success, keeping usage below the daily target of 1.2 billion litres – compared with 1.7 billion litres a day before they took effect. That means the region's reservoirs could last until November without any rain.
But Don Bradley, a spokesman for Metro Vancouver, says that doesn't mean the region can relax just yet, with reservoir levels still at about 55 per cent of their maximum capacity.
"We need a substantial and sustained amount of rain to get us back consistently in normal reservoir levels for this time of the year," Mr. Bradley said. "[That's] far more than is realistically expected based on the forecast, not only for the upcoming weekend, but well beyond that."
Reservoirs are typically at between 60 per cent and 80 per cent capacity at this time of year.
And despite the publicity surrounding the water restrictions – not to mention some high-profile shaming on social media – some residents are still not getting the message. Municipalities across the region have issued hundreds of fines, ranging from $200 to $500, depending on the city, and thousands more warnings to water scofflaws.
The City of Vancouver, for example, issued 217 tickets and 6,455 warnings to residents who violated the watering restrictions. In Surrey, 143 fines were given out, along with 1,934 warning letters. Richmond, which usually issues a handful of tickets under normal summer sprinkling restrictions, delivered 379 tickets and 973 warning letters.
Still, Marilyn Towill, the division manager of transmission operations for water services at Metro Vancouver, said most people did their part.
"We did see good adoption and the reduction in those demands that were necessary," she said. "We saw what we wanted to see."
Hans Schreier, an emeritus professor in soil science and instructor in watershed management at the University of British Columbia, said the region wouldn't need short-term restrictions if more municipalities mandated year-round water-saving measures for all households, such as water meters, which reduce usage by 30 per cent; low-flush toilets, which save about 100 litres of water per day; and the use of roof water for outdoor watering, since about 40 per cent of domestic water in Vancouver is used for lawns, he said.
"I don't think we are very innovative [in Metro Vancouver]," he said,
Kelowna, for example, has a bylaw mandating that lawns at new houses have 30 centimetres of topsoil, which holds water longer and reduces irrigation requirements by one-third, Prof. Schreier said. And on Bowen Island, a small community west of Vancouver, a bylaw prohibits residents from using domestic water for their gardens, making roof water the routine practice.
"This is all doable, it's not very expensive to do," Prof. Schreier noted. "All it takes is a little bit of rethinking and a bit of incentive."
As for relaxing the current restrictions, Ms. Towill of Metro Vancouver said officials will continue to monitor lake levels and rain forecasts. "Right now, we're not expecting that to happen any time soon."
Regional districts across the province have implemented varying degrees of water restrictions amid drought conditions that have gradually worsened throughout the summer.
At least two districts – on the Sunshine Coast and in the Nanaimo area on Vancouver Island – implemented Stage 4 restrictions, which are the most severe and prohibit most outdoor water use.