Councillors exploring best way to manage water supply
Posted May 13, 2019 4:06 pm.
Last Updated May 13, 2019 4:07 pm.
CALGARY (660 NEWS) – Climate change and population growth will have major effects on Calgary’s water supply over the next twenty years according to a new report that city councillors are discussing.
Council is going over watershed management, including long term plans for supply and flood mitigation.
Mayor Naheed Nenshi says the way things are right now, it isn’t looking good.
“By about 2036 we are going to hit the limit of our water license, particularly on hot days in the summer and the water shortages will only increase from there,” said Nenshi, “So it’s important now that we starting making the decisions we have to make around development, growth throughout the region, conservation, how we pay for water.”
Nenshi says council needs to explore solutions, including a conservation-based rate.
“So people who are really overusing, whether they are industrial or home users, might end up paying a little bit more, that’s many years of conversation to try and figure out what that would look like, but it’s intriguing to me to think about how we can protect the average water user, but make sure the ones who are overusing are paying for that use.”
On top of the watershed, Nenshi says the city must also work with the private sector to improve stormwater systems in order to prevent floods.
