Despite increased target, Calgary water use remains ‘unsustainable’

The City of Calgary said Tuesday it was increasing the threshold for acceptable water use amid major repairs to the Bearspaw South feeder main and despite the bigger target, Calgarians have once again missed the mark.

The city used 506 million litres on Tuesday, still a far cry from the updated 485 million litre guideline.

Francois Bouchart, the City of Calgary’s director of capital priorities and investment, is urging Calgarians to be mindful of their water usage with another string of hot weather days in the forecast.

“We are still using water at an unsustainable rate,” said Bouchart during a Wednesday afternoon update. “We are running the system at maximum capacity, stretching it beyond what is reasonable.”

He says meeting 485 million threshold ensures neighbourhood underground storage tanks are replenished and “safeguards” the Glenmore water treatment plant and pumping stations.

Calgary’s Infrastructure Services General Manager Michael Thompson said Tuesday that crews tested a new configuration which allows an additional 35 million litres of water to move through the system.

The city says anything between 485 million and 500 million will put a strain on the system, and anything above 500 million litres of water is “unsustainable.”

Residents are being asked to cut their indoor water use by reducing toilet flushes, limiting the length of showers, and only doing full loads of laundry and dishes.

“If everyone flushed the toilet once less, we would be halfway there,” says Bouchart.

Stage 4 restrictions prohibit outdoor use of potable water, which means a total ban on watering lawns and gardens.

The city said late last week they were going to start issuing fines for people who aren’t following the outdoor water rules. Officials said Tuesday that five tickets have been issued for outdoor water use during the restrictions.

Bouchart says there have been over 1,000 complaints about breaking the rules of outdoor water use since restrictions began. The breakdown of complaints includes 154 businesses, 74 multi-family properties and 715 residential properties.

Restrictions on outdoor water use are expected to last until Sept. 23, when the city says repairs will be finished.