In line with what ‘conspiracy theorists’ have said from the beginning, Calgary City Council is taking advantage of the water main break to establish permanent water control measures to limit citizens’ consumption and use.
Rather than fixing and expanding the current infrastructure so that water use can go on unimpeded at the previous level or higher, Calgary City Council has brought forward a new water schedule to decide on what days Calgarians can use water and for what.
Calgary’s committee is bringing these changes in by making subtle tweaks to existing bylaws next Tuesday. If the City Council approves the changes, Calgarians will only be allowed to use their sprinklers during pre-designated times and days, with more regulations soon to follow.
The city also acknowledged how permanent water restrictions may bankrupt businesses in certain industries like landscaping but said they’ve already made a commitment to reducing citizens’ water use by 30% within 30 years, and they plan to hit that target well in advance of the deadline.
The future of water use looks like it does today in a crisis
Coincidentally or not, 30% is the exact amount that Calgarians are currently being forced to reduce their water consumption by as a result of the water main break.
As noted by Mayor Jyoti Gondek earlier this week during an update wherein she thanked Calgarians for their sacrifice, “Calgarians, you have been incredible in cutting your water usage. I can tell you yesterday, on Sunday, June 9th, you used—this is a preliminary number—457 million litres of water, which is a very good news story.
“Last Wednesday, as an example, before the break happened, we were consuming 650 million litres; so, we have a very significant reduction in water usage.”
In other words, should Calgary City Council achieve its goal of reducing water consumption by 30%, Calgarians already know what it will look like.
It will look exactly like it does now: residents will be forced to ration water as though there is a crisis even when there is an abundant supply.
