OBWB warns recent rain hasn’t been enough to offset dry conditions

The Okanagan Basin Water Board is urging people to not let recent rainfall dissuade them from conserving water.

The water protection advocates said the rain in May and early June was welcome, but also said it wasn’t enough to replenish the local reservoirs or offset the slowing of stream flows.

The OBWB pointed out that the regional snowpack had already fallen to two per cent of normal as of June 1 and had put strains on the water systems. The group added the low snowpack was not aided by the fact that precipitation levels had been very low for the region so far this year, with Vernon having 61 per cent of normal rainfall, Kelowna having 53 per cent, and Penticton seeing just 31 per cent.

“Water scarcity continues to prevail despite some minor relief in water systems over the past two weeks, as overall precipitation and stream flow levels remain well below what is typical for this time of year,” the OBWB said in a release.