Calgary and area residents kept their water use in the ‘green zone’, consuming 496 million litres of water on Monday, the first day of being under Stage 4 water restrictions.
That is four million litres below the City of Calgary’s target of 500 million litres daily.
“Monday’s water use puts us in the safe and sustainable green zone,” said the city in a statement. “Thank you to everyone, Calgarians, businesses and our regional partners, for your collective efforts to save water and protect our system while this critical work is underway.”
Staying in the green zone can be accomplished if everyone reduces water use by 25 litres per day, according to the city.
Suggestions from the city for saving water include: Flushing toilets only when needed (each skipped flush saves nearly five litres of water); keeping showers to three minutes (saves about seven litres of water); running dishwashers and washing machines only with full loads (combined saves 90 litres of water).
Construction is ongoing, with crews having adjusted how water moves through the drinking water system as the feeder main is out of service.
“Pumps at the Bearspaw Water Treatment Plant are shut down and valves are closed to isolate the feeder main,” says the city. “On Tuesday, the first section of the pipe was fully drained, and excavation has begun across work areas at Sarcee Trail and Point McKay Park. Draining continues for the other sections of the pipe and in the coming days, after the pipe is fully exposed, crews will begin reinforcing it with a steel cage and concrete casing.”
Road closures and detours are in effect in the construction zone.
There are lane reductions on 16 Ave. NW near the Sarcee Tr. interchange, with one lane open in each direction.
The exit ramp from 16 Ave. onto Sarcee Tr. and the exit off Sarcee Tr. onto westbound 16 Ave. are both closed.
16 Ave. westbound is open but changed lane patterns will cause traffic to move slowly.
Drivers heading west on 16 Ave. are encouraged to plan ahead.
“Please be careful around construction areas and follow posted signage,” says the city. “When travelling on pathways affected by worksites, use the ramps provided and dismount your bike. For your safety, do not enter work areas. These are active construction sites, and only city crews and contractors wearing proper protective equipment are permitted onsite.”
More information is available at calgary.ca/savewater