Sunshine Coast residents use twice as much water per household as the average Canadian with more than 50 per cent of that water consumed during the summer to water our lawns and gardens. It's a distinction we should not be proud of.
This week the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) made a plea to the public to turn off their taps as the record water consumption during the Canada Day long weekend put a serious strain on the Coast's water reservoirs.
Last year at this time, residents came together to save the Chapman Creek watershed from logging operations by Western Forest Products. We won that battle, so now we must all band together to win this one - the fight for lower water consumption and greater water conservation.
The summer heat is here and we all want to make sure our lawns and gardens look good, but that doesn't mean we need to water every day. The SCRD has implemented water restrictions for all residents, and they are more than reasonable. If residents choose to disobey those restrictions, they will be warned. If the rules are flaunted even further, the SCRD say they aren't afraid to impose fines or even take the drastic step of cutting off the water to the offending resident.
Drastic times call for drastic measures. If we want to ensure that reservoirs are full and there is enough water for all, everyone must do his or her part to conserve. So let's turn off those taps.
Sea Cav in perilNo more Friday fireworks. No more Saturday parade. No more cotton candy. It's a reality that could happen unless more is done to help the Coast's oldest summer festival.
Sea Cavalcade celebrates its 40th anniversary in two weeks, but in order to make sure we can celebrate another 40 years, the volunteer committee needs a financial boost.
Organizers fear the event may be scaled back due to a lack of funds. The committee has received some support from the Town of Gibsons and a token amount from the SCRD, this despite the fact that residents in West Howe Sound and Elphinstone enjoy the event, as do many up and down the Coast. The event may be Gibsons-based, but residents all over the Coast come to enjoy the festivities. It would be a shame to see Sea Cavalcade cease to exist or see events cancelled due to lack of money. Surely our governments and business community can see it in their hearts to pledge a little more support to this event. Can you imagine a summer without a Sea Cavalcade? We can't.
