Water utility adds mandatory restrictions due to low levels in Lake Major

Halifax Water is introducing mandatory restrictions on some activities for customers in Dartmouth, Burnside, Cole Harbour, Westphal, North Preston and Eastern Passage who are supplied by the Lake Major reservoir.

Despite the weekend rainfall, water levels remain low and "a significant amount of rain is still required for the lake to return to normal levels," the water utility said Tuesday in a news release.

The restricted activities are:

• Watering the lawn and outside plants. 

• Washing vehicles.

• Making backyard ice surfaces.

Bulk water fill-up stations on the Lake Major system are also closed, so haulers must use other locations approved by Halifax Water. 

Voluntary conservation measures implemented by Halifax Water on Nov. 15 for residents supplied by the municipal reservoir remain in place. They include decreasing the length and frequency of showers, turning off the tap when not in use, limiting toilet flushes and washing only full loads of laundry and dishes.

Dry conditions

According to the Canadian Drought Monitor, the province experienced a long stretch of dry weather during the summer and fall. This means most parts of Nova Scotia are abnormally or moderately dry.

CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon said November rainfall is still running below average in the Halifax area and across the mainland of Nova Scotia. 

The month of October was also extremely dry, he said, with rainfall amounts of only 35 to 60 per cent of the normal average. 

"The reality is, the last time we saw a month with above-average precipitation across the province was in March, so it's going to take more than one rainy weekend to erase the water concerns that many folks are experiencing right now, including those getting their water from Lake Major," said Snoddon. 

Brittany Smith, a spokesperson for Halifax Water, said the lake received 61 millimetres of rain during the weekend, meaning it is at 18.3 metres.

"However, the lake was down approximately one metre when the restrictions first started, so we still require a significant amount of rain in order to lift any conservation measures," she said.