To put this into perspective, if all of Vancouver stopped using their water for one month, we would match what that reservoir would typically be for the middle of August," said The Weather Network meteorologist Tyler Hamilton. "This trend will continue to follow below the lower-bound through summer, unless we get a big pattern shift."
One hour of lawn sprinkling alone uses as much water as 25 toilet flushes, five loads of laundry and five dishwasher loads combined, according to Metro Vancouver's water supply report. Many communities in B.C. are prepared to deal with water supply shortages through drought management plans and water conservation programs already in place.
Both the Lower Mainland and South Fraser drought ratings were raised to Level 3 on June 30.