WaterWise

One hour, once a week!

Studies have shown that's all the watering it takes to maintain a healthy lawn during the summer. The Township of Langley's WaterWise team is hoping local residents take that message to heart and help protect local groundwater resources. Half of the Township's water supply comes from the ground and those groundwater levels are currently declining due to overuse. Summer months are the hardest time of year for Langley's groundwater aquifers as the demand for water doubles mostly due to lawn sprinking while rainfall drastically decreases.

The WaterWise program is a joint initiative between the Township and LEPS that was launched in 2002, and targets a different neighbourhood each summer for an educational campaign. WaterWise is an outreach program which provides the public with educational and practical tools they can utilise to help reduce water use. Through this program, the Township holds workshops, offers rain barrels and water conservation kits at a subsidized cost, and provides a toilet rebate program.

During the summer of 2008 WaterWise technicians and volunteers have been travelling door to door in the Walnut Grove area, the campaign focused on the Township's new ONE Water Conservation Challenge. ONE (Our New Environment) is a corporate program that was launched by the municipality to help employees reduce their footprint on the environment, and to urge the community to do the same. The WaterWise crew continues to work diligently to encourage residents join the ONE Water Conservation Challenge by taking a pledge to water their lawns for on hour or less each week. The 2008 target is to educate the residents of 500 homes in Walnut Grove and to get as many of these residents to join the ONE Water Conservation Challenge.

For detailed information on how to be WaterWise, visit the Township of Langley's WaterWise page.