Courtenay Water Restrictions 2026
Published: May 11, 2026
Comox Valley Regional District · British Columbia
Restrictions Active - Stage 1 – CVRD Annual (May 1) · Auto-escalates to Stage 2 July 1
3
Days/Week
5:00 AM – 8:00 AM
Allowed Hours
CVRD bylaw – warning then fines
Fine
Current restrictions
Stage 1 (CVRD Comox Valley Water System): lawn and garden sprinkling permitted 5:00 AM to 8:00 AM and 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM, three days per week. Even-numbered addresses water Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday; odd-numbered addresses water Wednesday/Friday/Sunday. Hand watering with a shut-off nozzle and drip irrigation are permitted any time. IMPORTANT: every year on July 1 the Comox Valley Water System automatically escalates to Stage 2 watering restrictions (two days per week) regardless of conditions.
What is still allowed
💧 Hand watering
Any time, any day with a hand-held hose fitted with an automatic shut-off nozzle.
🌿 Drip irrigation & soaker hoses
Permitted any time. Drip is exempt from sprinkler hour windows.
🥬 Vegetable gardens
Watering vegetable gardens by hand or drip is permitted at any time, even during the strictest stages.
🪣 Rain barrels
Rainwater collected on your own property is unrestricted and may be used at any time for any purpose.
Fines & enforcement
CVRD bylaw – warning then fines
First offences typically receive a warning under the CVRD Water Conservation Bylaw, escalating to fines for repeat offenders. CVRD bylaw officers respond to complaints and patrol member-municipality service areas during the active season.
Effective: May 1, 2026🏠 Strata rules
BC strata corporations cannot fine residents for brown or dormant lawns during active regional water restrictions. A strata bylaw that requires lawn watering in conflict with the CVRD bylaw is unenforceable under the BC Strata Property Act. Keep a copy of the current CVRD stage notice to share with your strata council if needed.
Why these restrictions exist in Courtenay
Courtenay is served by the Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) through the Comox Valley Water System, with the City of Courtenay handling distribution to city residents. Source water: Comox Lake, a reservoir on the Puntledge River system that also feeds BC Hydro's Puntledge generating station via the Comox Lake Dam. Stage 1 restrictions came into effect May 1, 2026 for the Black Creek-Oyster Bay, Comox Valley, Royston and Union Bay Water Systems. Every year on July 1, the Comox Valley Water System automatically moves to Stage 2 Water Restrictions regardless of conditions – this is a scheduled annual escalation built into the bylaw rather than a discretionary stage call. In Stage 2 lawn watering drops to two days per week with the same time-of-day windows. Local context: Mt. Washington Alpine Resort is upstream of Comox Lake; snowpack on Mount Washington and the upper Puntledge watershed is a leading indicator of summer water availability for the Comox Valley. The 2025-26 snowpack tracked below normal across southern BC, raising the likelihood of further escalation (Stage 3 or Stage 4) during peak summer. Comox Lake inflows have run below current outflows in some recent summers, prompting BC Hydro to reduce Puntledge generation to as low as 20% of capacity to conserve reservoir storage. The Tsolum and Puntledge rivers downstream of Comox Lake are salmon-bearing systems; environmental flow requirements are part of the CVRD's allocation calculations.
How to keep your Courtenay lawn alive
10 tips for Courtenay homeowners.
Stage 2 is mathematically certain after July 1 – plan your irrigation around two days per week, not three, for the bulk of summer.
Snowpack at Mt. Washington Alpine Resort directly feeds Comox Lake; track snowpack reports through the BC River Forecast Centre to anticipate higher-stage escalation.
Cool-season grasses dominate Vancouver Island lawns; mow at 75 to 90 mm and leave clippings to recycle moisture and shade soil.
Hand watering is unrestricted with a shut-off nozzle – prioritise mature trees and food gardens over turf during hot weeks.
Install a rain barrel on a downspout – Vancouver Island spring and fall rain make rain barrels exceptionally productive on the east coast of the island.
Skip your assigned watering day after any 5 mm or greater rainfall – Comox Valley spring showers can satisfy a lawn for a full week.
Apply 50 to 75 mm of bark or compost mulch around landscape beds; mulch retention is the single highest-ROI conservation step for Vancouver Island summer dry-spells.
Convert parkway strips to Microclover, drought-tolerant native sedges, or Fescue / Microclover blends – CVRD encourages low-water lawn alternatives.
Drip-irrigate vegetable gardens, fruit trees, and ornamental beds – drip is exempt from the day-of-week schedule under all stages.
Monitor comoxvalleyrd.ca/services/water for stage updates – Stage 3 (one day per week) and Stage 4 (no lawn watering) are realistic mid-summer possibilities given current snowpack.
Courtenay water restriction FAQs
Why does Courtenay water come from Comox Lake when 'Comox' is a separate town?
Mt. Washington snowpack – how does it affect my summer watering?
Comox Valley Regional District vs City of Courtenay – who sets the rules?
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