Editor:
Don’t tell someone on Marine Drive in Surrey between 128 Street and 133A Street that they can’t water their lawn at their multi-million-dollar home around 10 a.m.
They got the bucks, so they can do what they want.
Bylaws… lol!
Art Van-Lane, Surrey
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As an apartment dweller in White Rock, I am struck by the lush green lawns surrounding condos in this area.
Houses and apartment buildings sport dried-out grass in the lawns, yet condos, by and large, are verdant, untouched by the Level 4 drought that grips this ‘temperate rain forest’.
Are they in denial? Protecting an investment? What?
This selective waste of water by strata councils must stop immediately.
Christopher Jennings, White Rock
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I read with interest about the need to conserve water and the implementation of water restrictions for the Greater Vancouver area. This includes the City of Surrey.
I suggest most people would find the need to conserve water a matter of responsible civic duty and responsible environmental practice with a view towards the future.
Clearly there is no endless supply of fresh water.
Many Surrey councillors advocate responsibility in one form or another on their page on the city website.
However, when I think about responsible water conservation, I am puzzled as to why the city approves the building of multiple condos and townhouses.
A person need only to travel short distances in and around South Surrey to observe the overwhelming construction of numerous condos and townhouses. I would not be surprised to learn the number of new units in the last five years is well into the thousands.
Some of the complexes now sit on land where there used to be one or two houses but now there are multi-unit structures. Many large-lot properties in South Surrey currently have sold signs and property development signs, indicating more condo and townhouse units are to come.
I don’t think you need to be an expert in water consumption to figure out that the addition of thousands of toilets, dishwashers, washers and people showering use more water than the previous one- or two-family house that used to occupy the land.
I would like to see Mayor Linda Hepner go on public record and state unequivocally that prior to allowing the addition of thousands of new condos and townhouses, a water study was conducted by the city that supports the addition of thousands of new units.
Further, can the mayor please assure us that we will in fact never run out of water due to the local widespread and mass construction of condos and townhouses?
I request these statements from our mayor because it appears the conservation of water when approving the building of condos and townhouses was an afterthought, an oversight or no thought at all. I hope I am wrong.
K. Jones, Surrey
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If the Greater Vancouver area is to survive a severe water shortage, everyone should start using recycled water on their shrubs and trees.
Each household could purchase two buckets and one white basin to fit in their kitchen sink. The cost at the dollar store is about $6. Put one bucket in the bathroom, to transport your bath water outside.
If you use a shower, some water can be collected by placing the bucket in the shower with you. Place the other pail in the kitchen, and put the white basin in the kitchen sink. If you rinse your vegetables under running water, or your dishes before putting them in the dish washer, let the water run into the basin and then pour the water into the bucket.
It is amazing how much water you can collect in one day, and how quickly it can become part of your routine.
Areta Evans, Surrey
