Tuesday, May 04, 2010

No April Showers

The North Okanagan is facing a drought and there was no help from Mother Nature in terms of April showers. Coldstream Ranch is reporting 9.8 millimetres of precipitation for the month of April, about one-third what we normally see. Environment Canada's Doug Lundquist points out that normally, the Okanagan relies more on May and June for heavy rain. Lundquist does say it will remain unsettled for the next week or so before temperatures climb to above normal for a time. He says in the longterm -- the area should see more normal temperatures this spring.

The Greater Vernon Advisory Committee is holding a special, in-camera meeting Tuesday to discuss Stage 3 water restrictions. The tough rules were imposed after the North Okanagan Regional District board gave water staff the OK to deal with a drought and an historically-low water level in the hills. However politicians were taken aback by the speed in which those restrictions were imposed. They also led to a flurry of angry public telephone calls to the district and City of Vernon.

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