Despite hot and dry conditions in the summer and into the fall, Summerland’s water supply is in good shape this year.
Devon van der Meulen, manager of water utilities for Summerland, said Summerland’s reservoirs filled this spring, providing adequate water for the summer season.
“We had a fair bit of precipitation in the spring,” he said.
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The agricultural irrigation system has now been turned off for the season, resulting in lower levels of water consumption during the remainder of this year and through the winter.
He said municipal staff will monitor snowpack levels during the winter. However, he said there have been some years with low snowpack in winter, but additional precipitation at the end of winter and beginning of spring.
“Even if we have a low snowpack, we usually fill our reservoirs in spring,’ he said.
The Municipality of Summerland has 12 reservoirs that fill each year. These reservoirs have a combined capacity of 17,221 megalitres of water storage.
The community has been working on water-related projects, including the replacement of the outlet pipe at Isintok Lake, west of Summerland. This project was completed in July. The budgeted cost was slightly more than $2.4 million.
Over the past 12 years, Summerland’s water usage has decreased from 12,250 megalitres a year to 8,930 megalitres a year. The community’s population has increased during the same time, but crop changes and efficient irrigation technologies have been put in place.
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