On May 14, I joined 12 other Campbell River residents on Luisa Richardson’s Water Conservation Tour.
We travelled from John Hart Lake following the flow that the water from the lakes takes to provide water and power to Campbell River.
Along the way we learned the how and why the city is investing in water conservation and what we can do to assure that we keep enjoying abundant and clean drinking water.
Despite the city’s efforts and the signs posted around the lake clearly stating no swimming, no boating, no dogs and no dumping, some residents don’t seem to be getting the message.
We walked through the forest surrounding John Hart Lake and Roy Meyers of the Simms Creek Stewards showed us a shocking amount of garbage that has been dumped right next to the drinking water supply.
Whatever leaches out of these garbage piles drains right down into the lake and makes the task of Jen Brunn and the city water management staff tougher, and the potential cost to water treatment for the community higher.
We also toured the Norm Wood sewage treatment plant where Graham Stewart explained how our waste water is treated. He encouraged all of us to be very careful about the amount of grease and oil that we rinse down the sink as this clogs pipes and stresses the waste water purification system.
We are so fortunate to have such an excellent water source for our community. We should all learn more about it and do everything we can to help the water delivery system work at its optimum level. I recommend that everyone in Campbell River take this tour and that we clean up our act and pay attention to the message that the water conservation staff will be bringing to us at community events this summer.
Kathy Campbell
