Well the numbers are in… A lucky Kelowna resident has taken the Grand Prize of a $6,000 WaterWise Yard Upgrade and the City of Armstrong is the new Make Water Work Champion.
But in a summer of drought when it may have mattered most, perhaps the greatest win is the record number of Okanagan residents who pledged to Make Water Work this summer.
Make Water Work (MWW) is a residential outdoor water conservation initiative of the Okanagan Basin Water Board’s Okanagan WaterWise program and local government and utility partners throughout the valley, recognizing we’re all part of One valley. One water.
The initiative tackles the second largest use of water in the Okanagan—outdoor residential landscapes (mostly lawn) which account for 24 per cent of all water used. Residents are provided with tips to make water work more effectively and efficiently in their yards, and encouraged to Take the Pledge online at www.MakeWaterWork.ca and are then entered to win WaterWise yard prizes.
“We’re thrilled with the results. In all, at least 939 residents took the pledge,” noted Corinne Jackson, communications director with the OBWB and in charge of the Okanagan WaterWise program. “It’s the greatest number we’ve had since we began collecting pledges in 2012.”
For her efforts, Gena Sherwood won a $6,000 WaterWise yard upgrade.
Sherwood signed on to all six pledges to:
• Water plants. Not pavement.
• Water between dusk and dawn.
• Don’t mow. Let it Grow. Leave lawn 5-8 cm (2-3 inches) tall.
• Leave grass clippings as mulch.
• Top dress with compost; and
• Change out some lawn for drought-tolerant turf and/or native and low-watervariety plants.
“I’m extremely excited,” said Sherwood. “Redoing our landscape to be more WaterWise has been a project we’ve been wanting to do, so this will definitely help.”
Earlier this summer, Sherwood said she planted low-water plants in the front and let her lawn go dormant, understanding the need to conserve through this drought. “It will come back,” she laughed.
“Ultimately though, I want something easy to care for and that respects the environment. I don’t want to have to water.”
As part of the prize package, KelownaGardens.com will now do an audit of Sherwood’s family’s property and work with her to determine what would be best, whether it’s proper irrigation thanks to ProSource Irrigation, additional WaterWise plants from Bylands Nursery and/or a conversion to drought-tolerant lawn from Eco-Turf.
