Kayakers drift in front of Medicine Hat city hall on Thursday afternoon. The level on the South Saskatchewan River is lower than usual, but city officials say rain in May and improved reservoir levels may negate the need for mandatory water restricting and lawn sprinkler bans this summer.--News Photo Collin Gallant
@@CollinGallant
Hatters nearly tripled the city’s water conservation targets in May – albeit during heavy rain – and municipal water managers now say that although the situation could change, voluntary action may be all that is needed to protect supply.
Medicine Hat has actually been at Stage 1 of its water reduction plan since last summer – a state where residents are asked to voluntarily reduce general use, especially outdoors.
Meanwhile, city departments have enacted reductions as the municipality joined a water-sharing agreement with other users in the South Saskatchewan River basin to protect water supply across the region.
Environmental utilities director Jamie Garland told a council committee meeting Thursday that though hotter, drier weather is forecast for the balance of the summer, the wet spring led to a 27 per cent water savings in May, compared to a 10 per cent goal.
That coincided with record rains that month, and June is typically wetter than most.
“The situation has improved a lot, though there are key reservoirs along the (basin) that we are still watching,” said Garland. “If things continue the way they are, I don’t expect that we would up our (alert) level (to mandatory measures).”
That said, he stressed, the situation can change, and Hatters should be mindful of challenges faced by irrigators this summer, and the health of the river where levels are being managed carefully.
“The snow pack is essentially melted,” he told committee. “We’re trying to leave the reservoirs in better shape (in the fall going into freeze-up), than where they started.”
According to the drought management plan seen by the News, moving to Stage 2 in Medicine Hat would bring in mandatory measures with the goal of reducing water use in half.
In it, opposite-day lawn watering would only allow odd- and even-number homes to water outdoors for 30 minutes three days each week.
The same schedule would be observed at priority city parks (fewer days at less-used parks), the cemetery, campground, sports fields and other city-maintained areas.
Stage 3 involves steeper reductions to gain 75 per cent, and Stage 4 would involve a total ban.
Calgary is currently under a mandatory restrictions and state of emergency as that city grapples with a major line break that requires mandatory reductions.
Milk River is also dealing with extremely low river levels after irrigation works in Montana halted transfers from the St. Mary’s River to the Milk.
