Okanagan at level 3 drought rating

Despite cooler temperatures and some rain showers in the Okanagan the past few days, the province has elevated the Okanagan region to a level 3 drought rating.

The rating indicates serious ecosystem or socioeconomic impacts ar possible and calls for voluntary water use reductions from all water users, including residents, industry, farmers and municipalities, according to a release for the Okanagan Basin Water Board.

The suggested target is a 30 per cent reduction in water use.

A low snowpack and lack of spring rains has meant that some upland reservoirs did not fill and Okanagan Lake did not reach ‘full pool.’