Stage 4 water restrictions remain just beyond the horizon for the time being, but everything could change depending on weather, according to Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) utilities director Dave Crosby.
“We’re a little hesitant to estimate that right now. We’re watching what the weather is doing,” Crosby said. “It’s kind of bouncing around. We’re hopeful for more rain.”
As of July 14, water usage on the Sunshine Coast was at 14.4 million litres per day. Ten days prior to that, consumption was at 22 million litres per day.
“It was quite a drop over the weekend because of that little bit of rain,” Crosby said. “We actually went down to about 12.6 [Sunday] but it’s bounced back up because people will hand-water when the sun comes out.”
“I think our customers are doing excellently,” Crosby added. “Hopefully we can keep it that low or lower.”
The threat of Stage 4 restrictions has many farmers on the Sunshine Coast concerned about their crops.
Annette Clarke, a farmer from Roberts Creek, is leading a petition to ask the SCRD board for exemptions to the Stage 4 restrictions for farmers and food producers.
“If we were cut off, lots of [farmers] couldn’t produce food anymore,” Clarke said. “It’s not just about the business people are losing, but about the food security that takes a cutback – maybe for some years – because a lot of farmers, once they lose their business, they’re probably not starting again.”
Clarke outlined two main goals of the petition. The short-term goal is to get farmers and food producers to survive this summer. The long-term goal is for a policy change in terms of how water consumption is treated on the Sunshine Coast.
According to Clarke, communities like Nanaimo, Comox and the Okanagan Valley have incentive programs for helping farmers and food producers to buy large water storage tanks and drip irrigation systems.
“I think we really have to talk about this and get some on-the-ground programs in place,” Clarke said. “Not just another study, I think there was a lot of money spent on studies and other things. We just need some projects that work and help people produce food.”
Clarke started the online petition on Monday and it had more than 200 supporters by Wednesday. The petition will be presented to the SCRD board on July 23.
