It’s raining.
And that’s a good thing. That and a drop in water usage has taken us down from Stage 3 watering restrictions to Stage 2.
Unfortunately, as soon as many folks saw a rain drop hit their windshield they were already turning on the lawn sprinklers full blast.
Have we not learned anything from our rather serious drought this summer?
What does it take for the lesson to soak in, so to speak?
For some reason we continue to think that clean, fresh water is in endless supply. Who do we think we are, Nestle Incorporated?
The unfortunate fact is that clean, fresh water is not in infinite supply. Start with a drought, throw in a couple of massive forest fires and then flush our sewage into our oceans, and, well, you get the picture. We’ve taken our water supply for granted for as long as we can remember. And we’re long overdue for a reality check.
Metro Vancouver has pledged to review the entire water conservation plan, and we look forward to seeing what results.
Metro utilities committee chair and City of North Vancouver Mayor Darrell Mussatto has said all options are on the table, including water meters. Municipalities that have them have been repeatedly shown to be more judicious with their water.
We’d also like to get a better handle on industrial and business water usage. There’s some question about whether we moved to Stage 3 soon enough, and we heard plenty of debates on whether the restrictions were completely fair or rational. For example: do golf courses really need to be watered?
We may be jumping the gun here, but we’re thinking it’s time for water meters on all households and all businesses.
There’s nothing like a bill that drives the stark reality of the value of water home.
It would be nice to think that people understand the value of water, but this past summer has shown us that many of us just can’t be trusted on an “honour” water usage system.
People were trying to water their lawns in the dead of night to avoid detection (surprise, the green grass was a dead giveaway). They were lined up at commercial car washes thinking that it was OK. Really? Can’t you survive with a dirty car?
Yes, it will be costly putting in water meters. And, yes, people will still find a way to cheat.
But it really is the only way that people will truly “value” our water.
