B.C.’s Sunshine Coast declares state of emergency over drought
SECHELT, B.C. — A British Columbia community has declared a state of local emergency as a drought drags on and the area risks running out of drinking water.
The Sunshine Coast Regional District, the District of Sechelt and the shíshálh Nation issued the declaration Monday, saying the first order affects non-essential commercial uses of water, including for swimming pools, breweries and concrete, asphalt and gravel businesses.
A declaration says the Chapman Water System is at “eminent risk” of being exhausted due to drought and it supplies about 90 per cent of the population in the area, about 70 kilometres north of Vancouver.
The Sunshine Coast is one of many communities in B.C. experiencing Level 5 drought conditions — the most severe in the province’s classification scale.