The Oldman Watershed Council is trying to keep residents in southern Alberta up to date about the water situation with a new online series.
Executive director Shannon Frank says the video and vlog series will come out from now until April and will focus on different topics surrounding water in the area. She says this is a way to help residents do one of the most important things during the current water situation, and that is to stay informed.
“It is looking very serious, the government was saying we only have 37 per cent of average stream flow in the Old Man River, so it is very low, and the Old Man Reservoir is at only 26 per cent full and it is normally around 60 per cent full this time of year. So what we need is a lot of snowpack this winter.”
Frank says peak snowpack is typically seen in mid-April, so until then it is unknown if we are looking at a serious drought next year or not. Frank adds there could be a substantial amount of rain in the spring which would help, so for now it is a game of wait and see. One of the key places the watershed will be watching these conditions is in the mountains, where 90 per cent of the region’s water comes from.
Until then, Frank says residents are being asked to conserve water where possible.
“It is even more important in the growing season to conserve outdoor water use, because outdoor water use is always a lot higher than indoor, usually by 40 to 50 per cent of city use is outdoor,” Frank says. “In the growing season, we are asking people to only water their lawns about an inch a week, or see if people would even consider getting rid of their lawn and consider planting native flowers, native shrubs and grass that can withstand drought because they are used to it and have adapted to it after growing here for thousands of years.”
Those interested in learning more can find the information on the Oldman Watershed Council website or their social media channels.
