The changing of the seasons is bringing water restrictions to the region.
The City of Nanaimo and areas of the Regional District of Nanaimo have instituted Stage 1 watering restrictions. Customers of nine RDN water service areas, including Nanoose Bay, are now under the watering restrictions. This means sprinkling can only occur between the hours of 7 p.m. and 7 a.m., on any day of the week, for any duration. Hand-watering, drip irrigation and micro irrigation can be applied at any time. Vegetable and food gardens are exempt from the restrictions.
According to the RDN website, Stage 1 restrictions are intended as a soft entry point to the outdoor watering season, which serves as a reminder that the dry months are ahead and planning for efficient irrigation is important.
Additional local water providers that are moving to Stage 1 watering restrictions on April 1 include: City of Parksville, City of Nanaimo, EPCOR French Creek, Bowser Waterworks District, North Cedar Improvement District and Southwest Extension Waterworks.
Other water service areas are not implementing restrictions at this time.
Stage 2 restrictions are slated to come into effect in May and will limit residents to watering on alternate days.
For more information and a map that displays the water service areas in our region including their current watering restrictions, visit www.teamwatersmart.ca.
