Vernon Water Restrictions 2026

Vernon is the largest city in the North Okanagan and the namesake regional anchor for Greater Vernon Water (GVW), a regional water utility administered by the Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO). On May 7, 2026, GVW declared Stage 2 Mandatory under its Water Shortage Management Plan and Water Use and Regulation Bylaw No. 2545 in response to low snowpack across the Okanagan, warmer-than-normal spring temperatures, low spring rainfall, and reservoir levels significantly below normal. GVW source storage as of the declaration: • Duteau Creek Reservoir: ~9,000 ML (10-year average ~13,500 ML – significantly below normal) • Kalamalka Lake: elevation ~391.25 m (target 391.6 m) • Aberdeen Reservoir: drawing from same regional system These storages are well below the trigger thresholds that GVW uses to maintain its 4-stage system. Stage 2 is the second-most-restrictive utility designation; Stage 3 would further restrict to only hand-watering and drip, and Stage 4 would prohibit all outdoor water use. Stage 2 schedule: • Lawn sprinkler irrigation: 1 day per week, 10 PM to 6 AM only • Odd addresses: Wednesday; even addresses: Sunday (verify at rdno.ca/gvw) • Drip, micro-irrigation, hand-watering: permitted any time outside the daytime window • Trees and shrubs: hand-watering any day with shut-off nozzle • Vegetable gardens: any time with shut-off nozzle or drip • Vehicle washing at home: discouraged; commercial car wash recommended • Pressure washing: limited to safety-critical surface preparation BC Province may declare a separate Provincial Drought Level for the Okanagan Valley – the provincial system assesses natural stream flows independently of utility reservoir storage. The two systems can diverge: GVW's Stage 2 is driven by Duteau Creek and Kalamalka Lake storage plus customer demand forecasts, whereas the Provincial Drought Level (currently under review) is driven by natural flows in regional creeks and rivers. The two frameworks operate in parallel; residents follow the more restrictive of any rules that apply to their specific service area. Vernon's distinctive features include Predator Ridge resort, Silver Star Mountain ski area (separate water system, not on GVW), the orchard heritage of the North Okanagan, and the namesake Lake Kalamalka (one of GVW's source waters). The city has a long history of conservation, but the May 7 Stage 2 declaration is the earliest-in-year escalation in recent memory. Monitor https://www.rdno.ca/gvw for stage updates and weekly storage reports. RDNO also publishes a Water Shortage Management Plan summary that explains how stage triggers are calculated.