Last summer's deadly heat dome has prompted the City of Vancouver to cut back on lawn watering privileges.
Starting on May 1, new lawn watering rules will come into effect. The new rules have dropped lawn watering for residential and non-residential lawns to one day per week, with a three-hour limit on manual watering and two hour limit on automatic watering systems.
The 'heat dome' led to "1.795 billion litres of potable water used in one day across our region, just shy of the all-time record of 2 billion litres used," states a City of Vancouver press release.
Water rules are determined regionally for Metro Vancouver and are adopted by member jurisdictions.
"Lawns in Vancouver generally need only one inch of water for one hour each week, including rainfall, to stay healthy and green," notes the City of Vancouver, adding that locals can also opt to let their lawns "go golden" and not water them and still see a "lush" return in fall.
The new rules are different between residential and non-residential lawns.
Residential lawn watering:
- Even-numbered addresses on Saturdays
- Odd-numbered addresses on Sundays
- Automatic watering: 5 to 7 a.m.
- Manual watering: 6 to 9 a.m.
- Watering trees, shrubs and flowers is permitted any day from 5 to 9 a.m. if using a sprinkler, or any time if hand watering or using drip irrigation. All hoses must have an automatic shut-off device.
- Edible plants are exempt from regulations
Non-residential lawn watering:
- Even-numbered addresses on Mondays
- Odd-numbered addresses on Tuesdays
- Automatic watering: 4 to 6 a.m.
- Manual watering: 6 to 9 a.m.
- Watering trees, shrubs and flowers is permitted any day from 4 to 9 a.m. if using a sprinkler, or any time if hand watering or using drip irrigation. All hoses must have an automatic shut-off device.
- Edible plants are exempt from regulations
"Our existing water system was designed and built for historical patterns of rain and snow," explains the City of Vancouver. "However our climate is changing and the need for water is growing. With summer demand for potable water increasing, and fewer rainy days, the region is becoming more susceptible to droughts and there is less potable water available each year."
Get your lawns ready for another sweltering summer. Vancouver residents are urged to check their permitted watering through the VanConnect app or online.
