The Town of Coaldale is looking at what it can do to mitigate water concerns heading into what is predicted to be a dry summer.
Town council discussed drought conditions at its Feb. 5 committee of the whole meeting, where members both signaled support for any potential water-saving measures the City of Lethbridge puts in place, and a desire for the town to take its own steps.
“In the spirit of provincial and regional cooperation we thought it would be a good idea to get ahead of this now and signal our support for the city’s forthcoming water conservation plan. At the same time, we see this as an opportunity to start discussing what, if anything, the Town of Coaldale can or should do to supplement those measures. At the end of the day, the amount of water we use also has long term growth horizon implications for the Town. The fact is that when we use less water, we stand to expand our growth horizon, and so if there are ways to make sure we’re using water more efficiently as a community, we want to consider those as well.”
Coaldale shares a water supply with Lethbridge and will be required to adhere to any restrictions the city puts in place.
The conversations stemmed from a letter to municipal leaders across the province from minister of environment and protected areas, Rebecca Schulz, where she said municipal action will be needed.
The province has assembled a drought command team to look at ways to mitigate water concerns.
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