Instead of upping water restrictions to Stage 2, the City of Kelowna will be upping enforcement of the currently in-place Stage 1 restrictions.
City staff said that residents who have received warnings but continue to ignore current restrictions could face fines.
Enforcement of the watering restriction comes as drought conditions in the Central Okanagan remain high. Staff said compliance now will delay further restrictions on watering.
“We want to exhaust all available options before we move to Stage 2 restrictions. The move to Stage 2 will affect every city water utility customer and, at this point, we prefer to focus on non-compliance with current restrictions,” water operations manager Andy Weremy said.
“We’re making this announcement so everyone has ample warning that enforcement action is coming.”
The city’s water operations team will leave reminders at properties where sprinklers are found running outside of their scheduled days. Only properties who have received a warning will receive a $50 fine if they are found watering outside their scheduled time again.
Under Stage 1 restrictions, odd-numbered addresses can water on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and even-numbered addresses can water on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.
For more information on Kelowna’s Water Smart program, visit the city’s website.
More information on water conservation and the effects of the drought can be found at Make Water Work.
READ MORE: Wildfire devastates community of Monte Lake; Kamloops on high alert as blaze edges closer
@twilamam twila.amato@blackpress.ca
