Water warning sounded

Photo: Contributed

Less snow and warmer than normal spring weather has Greater Vernon Water officials warning people to use water sparingly.

Snow pack plays an important role in supplying water to fill our reservoirs during spring melt. And readings taken by GVW April 1 at three monitoring stations near the Duteau Creek water reservoirs revealed no snow at two of them. That's unusual for April 1.

Readings at the third station showed the snow-water equivalent, or water content of the snow, at 77 per cent of average for this time of year.

“These are unusual readings showing high variability within the watershed. GVW water storage levels in the Duteau Creek reservoirs are currently above average," said Jennifer Miles, water sustainability co-ordinator.

"However, the current storage levels are similar to those typically seen in May, suggesting that we may start to use our stored water supplies earlier than normal. This could be of concern if the normal precipitation usually received in June is below average.”

According to the B.C. River Forecast Centre, April high-elevation snowpack measurements were moderately low (76 per cent of normal) for the Okanagan basin, which includes the Kalamalka Lake water source.

The South Thompson basin, which includes the Duteau Creek water reservoirs, is at 92 per cent of normal snowpack.

The centre also forecasts below-normal stream runoff in the Kalamalka-Wood basins and notes that lower snowpacks in the Okanagan indicate an increased likelihood of low summer flows.

Seasonal forecasts from Environment Canada indicate a high likelihood of above normal temperatures during the period of April to June 2015.

High temperatures may increase water demand, so GVW reminds customers to use water wisely in light of the low snowpack.