If running through a sprinkler is part of your plan for keeping cool during the lazy, hazy days of summer, you better be an early riser.
Metro Vancouver’s lawn watering regulations are in effect until Oct. 15, but they don’t prohibit folks from running through sprinklers.
“Metro Vancouver’s drinking water conservation plan doesn’t specifically prohibit sprinkling for purpose of cooling off,” said Greg Valou, a communications specialist with Metro Vancouver.
The City of New Westminster’s lawn watering bylaw, however, restricts the use of sprinklers to the permitted hours, said Ashleigh Young, the city’s communications officer.
“For the sake of conserving water during the hot summer months when demand is highest and supply is lowest, we encourage residents fill small pools, water tables, or similar, for children to cool down, as sprinkler toys require the continuous running of water for an extended period outside of the permitted times for this type of water use,” she said.
Lawn watering restrictions currently in place allow even-numbered addresses to do automatic watering from 5 to 7 a.m. and manual watering from 6 to 9 a.m. on Saturdays only. Odd-numbered addresses can water during those same hours on Sundays.
Residents are permitted to water trees, shrubs and flowers any day from 5 to 9 a.m. if they're using a sprinkler, or at any time if they're hand watering or using drip irrigation. All hoses must have an automatic shut-off device.
For a details about watering restrictions, scroll in the images above to see Metro Vancouver’s current restrictions.
Aside from sprinklers, several of the city’s parks have outdoor pools (Moody Park, Hume Park - follow the links to reserve spots, and Grimston Park wading pool) or spray parks (Riall, Queens, Hume, Moody and Westminster Pier Park.)
