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The extreme heat and humidity experienced across much of Ontario and Quebec last week, from Monday, July 4 to Friday, July 9, has raised additional concerns about the already record-low water levels across the region and has prompted warnings about residents’ energy consumption.
The official heat wave also had an evaporation effect on the local rivers. On Tuesday, July 13, the Ottawa River Regulation Planning Board observed the river’s water levels to be 41.16 metres in Grenville, slightly below the normal level.
“The hot weather certainly is going to keep the water levels decreasing, and the northern reservoirs are for the most part quite low, so unless we get some real precipitation, continued decreases are in our future,” said Michael Sarich, of the Ottawa River Regulating Committee.
He noted there were some concerns for water supply in Montreal but none yet in Hawkesbury or Grenville. The drinking water intake for Hawkesbury and Champlain Township is located on the Ottawa River.
Meanwhile, the total outflow of the river at Carillon is 780 cubic metres per second, which is just under 40 per cent of its average outflow last July and one-third of the average outflow in July 2008. The current level is the lowest outflow amount on record since 1964, when the Carillon dam was opened.
“In terms of our average discharge [at the Carillon dam] from mid-April to early July, it’s a historic record low,” Sarich said, adding low levels have also been recorded at other points along the river. “We would certainly want to be a bit conservative [with water consumption], if the summer continues to be dry. Usually, our low water period is at end of August or in early September, so we’re still guarding against that.
“We have record lows for this time of year.”
Such statements were echoed by the Ottawa Riverkeeper conversation charity, whose director of operations, Natasha Wilson, said, “[The water levels] are definitely low, unseasonably low. These are levels we see later in the fall.”
While officials acknowledge the extreme heat is a factor in the low water levels, they explain the below-normal precipitation this past winter and spring and the warm temperatures from March to May were the major influential factor.
On May 11, the low water levels seen this spring in the Ottawa River basin were equivalent to “those normally observed during the summer period,” the Ottawa River Regulation Planning Board said in a press release. “Without significant rainfall, levels and flows on the main stem of the Ottawa River will continue to remain below average.”
As a result of the low water levels, events such as a wakeboarding competition on the Ottawa River in Hawkesbury and the Raisin River Canoe Race were cancelled this year.
On June 1, the South Nation Conservation (SNC) organization declared a level one low water condition for the South Nation River, as the three-month average for the months of March, April, and May was less than 80 per cent of the historical average.
At the time, SNC resources technician Lisa Migneault sent out a press release encouraging residents to conserve water, adding, “With the reduced rain over the last few months, water supply for the hot summer months may be at risk.”
Migneault told The Review last week that although precipitation in June brought the South Nation River’s levels back to near-normal, there is still some concern for the summer months.
“Right now, our biggest concern is the lack of precipitation in the month of July,” she said. “With these high temperatures, we’re still concerned with the potential for water supply problems, therefore on a weekly basis we’re reevaluating the condition [of the river].”
Residents were also asked this week to reduce their energy consumption, in light of the extreme temperatures.
“With the high temperature we are experiencing, Hydro Hawkesbury would like you to reduce the use of electricity in order to maintain stability on the distribution and transformation system,” Hydro Hawkesbury manager Michel Poulin wrote in an advisory. “Please reduce the use of air conditioning units.”
SNC offers their top 5 easy tips to conserve water:
1. Participate in the Raisin Region Conservation Authority (RRCA) / SNC Water Efficiency Team (WET) Program, which encourages homeowners to reduce water consumption by providing water efficient devices at no cost. Contact Normand Genier at 613-938-3611 ext. 228 for more information.
2. Repair all leaks around the home.
3. If you must water your lawn, early morning or late evening watering reduces evaporation.
4. Use a pail of soapy water to wash your car and rinse it off quickly with a hose.
5. Water plants with water collected in a rain barrel.