Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
The threat of invasive mussels has led the Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB) to propose a potential temporary ban on all out-of-province boats entering B.C.'s waterways. James Littley, deputy administrator for the OBWB, said two species of freshwater mussels — zebra and quagga mussels — could be catastrophic to lake and river systems if stringent measures aren't put in place to keep them out of the province.
A community consulting firm is asking, ‘Water you doing, Spall?’ The Township of Spallumcheen is looking to get the word out about the critical importance of water conservation. According to Spall reports, the Okanagan has one of the highest rates of water use per person in Canada, meaning there is less water available per person in the Okanagan than anywhere else in the country.
Some Westside Road residents will have to cut back on their watering. Stage 2 outdoor water restrictions are in place for Star Place, Falcon Ridge, Killiney Beach, Sunset Ranch, Upper Fintry / Shalal Road / Valley of the Sun and Westshore water systems. Restrictions are in effect Friday, June 16 and expected to remain in place until Sept. 15, 2023. The restrictions limit outdoor watering to two days a week. Outdoor watering is permitted on Saturdays and Tuesdays for even numbered addresses, and Sundays and Wednesdays for odd numbered addresses.
The Okanagan is one of Canada’s most water-stressed regions and local organizations are hoping to take steps to conserve water in communities, which in turn allows for crops, wildlife and more to thrive across the valley. With temperatures rising and summer approaching quickly, residents are being reminded to think about one of the most important resources: water. “It’s incumbent on us to protect our water source and the biggest pillar in that is conservation and this is an effort to take those necessary steps to conservation,” said Blair Ireland, mayor of Lake Country.
It was the Coldstream Ranch manager, Crawley Ricardo who, in 1905, hired engineer A.E. Ashcroft to look at creating an irrigation system from Jones Creek (now called Duteau Creek) with dams on Aberdeen and Haddo lakes in the hills south of Coldstream. The massive project started with the creation of the White Valley Irrigation and Power Company in 1906 to initially supply the Coldstream Ranch and Estates with water.
The Okanagan can expect more spring floods, but also longer and drier summers in the future. That’s thanks to climate change, says James Littley, deputy administrator with the Okanagan Basin Water Board. “According to the 2020 report, climate projections for the Okanagan region, we will see warmer temperatures here,” Littley told delegates to the Southern Interior Local Government Association convention in Vernon on Tuesday.
High streamflow advisories have been issued for two more regions as heavy rain sweeps over British Columbia’s southern Interior. B.C.’s River Forecast Centre added the advisories for the Similkameen and Okanagan regions after previously issuing bulletins for all of Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast and Metro Vancouver through to the Fraser Valley.
Of course Kelowna residents take their water for granted. It's plentiful, clean and cheap. And, as such, we tend to let it flow freely from the tap with hardly a second thought. "Yes, Canadians use a lot of water per capita," said City of Kelowna utility services manager Kevin Van Vliet. "And, in the Okanagan, we're some of the biggest per capita users in Canada because of the irrigation used for agriculture in our hot, dry climate."
Unfortunately, sticking close to home doesn’t exempt you from the challenges of winter weather. Water damage has been an issue in B.C.’s Okanagan region this week as temperatures plummeted. Splatsin First Nation, near Enderby, had a crack form in its water reservoir due to the cold weather. Residents were told Thursday to fill and store water in case the crack led to water service being cut off.
In the Okanagan, water conservation is a year-round effort. But with warmer summer temperatures now upon us, it’s time to start prioritizing our outdoor water smarts. Everyone has a part to play in conserving water and protecting our changing valley for future generations. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to step up and become a water hero this summer: Schedule a free irrigation assessment to ensure your system is working efficiently, collect rainwater in barrels and use it for irrigation, water between midnight and 6 a.m., treat your yard well: let your grass grow long, sharpen your mower blade and over-seed your lawn. Learn more about proper lawn maintenance at Kelowna.ca/watersmart
The May long weekend marks the unofficial start to summer, which means it’s a good time for Okanagan residents to start thinking about their water use. The Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB) is encouraging residents to take the ‘Make Water Work’ pledge. Okanagan mayors have been promoting the annual campaign on social media with tips for getting the most out of your water.
Ice volcanoes have formed again along the shores of Okanagan Lake in Penticton. An ice volcano is a conical mound of ice formed over a lake via the eruption of water and slush through an ice shelf. The process is wave-driven, with wind providing the energy for the waves to cut through the ice and form the so-called volcanoes. The liquid water and slush freeze and fall back to the surface, growing the formation.
Officials are asking people to conserve water in areas affected by low rainfall and the extreme heatwave in late June and early July. The province says drought is affecting most of southern British Columbia and the central Interior. There is water scarcity on Vancouver Island and low flow levels in waterways there as well as in the entire Thompson-Nicola region, the Cariboo, Shuswap and Okanagan.
The Okanagan Basin Water Board has approved more than $318,000 in funding to 17 projects that will help conserve and protect water in the valley while addressing the larger issues of climate change. Directors approved the Water Conservation and Quality Improvement grants at their last board meeting, April 2. Recipients have now been notified. In total, there were 31 applications with a total ask of $688,281.
