THURSDAY FEBRUARY 13, 2014
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ELVIS SIGHTINGS
Local organizers have big plans for a Parksville Tribute Festival
A27
POVERTY IN PARADISE
Reporter Lissa Alexander starts a three-part series today
A5
WATER SUPPLY
Dry winter raises alarm
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Parksville 250.927.1271
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This region has experienced less than 40 per cent of usual rainfall JOHN HARDING editor@pqbnews.com
Those who manage the water systems of mid-Island communities say they aren’t pushing any panic buttons, but they are watching this dry winter with an eye to the water supply in the summer. Water system managers from Qualicum Beach, Parksville, Lantzville, Nanaimo, the regional district and EPCOR Water Services met last week to talk about the low levels of the snowpack and rainfall being experienced this year. “We are monitoring the situation,” said Mike Donnelly, the manager of water and utility services for the Regional District of Nanaimo, in an interview with The NEWS. “We are not in a critical situation right now. We have February and March and we see a lot of rain coming at us this week, for example.” The regional district issued a news They (rural residents) are release Wednesday that stated withthe best water managers out adequate rainfall, water reserout there voirs do not fill as quickly and aquiMIKE DONNELLY fers recharge more slowly. The RDN said this can limit surface and ground water supply in the drier summer months, when water demand is at its peak. While winter precipitation may yet reverse the dry pattern, the RDN said water managers will begin conservation messaging earlier in 2014, so that residents will have the information they need if extra conservation measures are required. The rain gauge at the City of Parksville works yard has yielded some telling data. The average (2005-2012) combined rainfall for the months of October through January is 504 millimetres. From October, 2013 through January, 2014, the gauge recorded only 188 mm of precipitation, about 37 per cent of the average. It was even drier in Qualicum Beach, where a total of 155 mm of precipitation fell in the months of October, 2013 through January, 2014. In the same months a year earlier (October, 2012 through January, 2013), a total of 358 mm of precipitation fell at the Qualicum Beach Airport. While any talk about water supply inevitably turns to the possibility of tighter restrictions in the summer, Donnelly said “we’re not there yet.” See FISH FACE CHALLENGES, page A4
LISSA ALEXANDER PHOTO
FAMILY DAY IN COOMBS: Three-year-old Avery Schug successfully spins a hula hoop during Family Day celebrations at the Coombs Fairgrounds on Monday. For more photos, visit our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/PQBNews.
1st Annual Ladies Night
Tues. Feb. 18, 2014 • 6pm to 9pm • Doors Open at 5:30pm Please join us for an evening of fun, for ladies only! Take a tour of our dealership. Technicians will be on hand to answer your questions in a friendly, fun environment. Live demonstrations, plus much more!
Door Prizes • Local Vendors • Champagne • Appies & Desserts
512 EAST ISLAND HWY, PARKSVILLE
Please phone to reserve your spot, spaces limited. RSVP: 250-248-8383