PITT MEADOWS, BC – The City of Pitt Meadows is providing local residents and businesses with free lawn signs to promote water conservation and adherence to regional lawn watering restrictions this summer.

“In the summer, our region’s water use can increase by 50 per cent or more, mainly due to excess lawn watering,” says Pitt Meadows Mayor Nicole MacDonald. “I want to challenge and encourage our residents and local businesses to let their lawns go dormant this summer by following watering restrictions or by not watering their lawns at all. We know our residents care about conserving drinking water so that we have water for drinking, cooking and cleaning.”

Free lawn signs are available for Pitt Meadows residents to pick up from Pitt Meadows City Hall, Pitt Meadows Family Recreation Centre and South Bonson Community Centre, during business hours. Residents can display the sign in the lawn of their home or business, ensure they are following watering restrictions, and spread the word by sharing a photo of their sign on Instagram. They are asked to tag the City (@citypittmeadows) and use the hashtag #PittMeadowsProud, to be featured on the City’s Instagram channel. After watering restrictions are lifted, residents can either choose to reuse the signs next year, or recycle them in their blue bins.

“We are also doing our part to conserve water by following watering restrictions at City parks and facilities,” says the City’s Parks Manager, Andy Messner. “You may see the lawns at non-sport fields around the community going brown this summer, but we know that lawns go dormant in dry weather and quickly green up again in the fall when the rain returns.”

Pitt Meadows City Hall will also have signs displayed on its lawns, and members of City Council, including the Mayor, are participating in this important initiative to let lawns go dormant in an effort to save drinking water.

Metro Vancouver sets regional watering regulations as part of the region’s Drinking Water Conservation Plan from May 1 to October 1. Permitted lawn watering days and times are determined for both residential and non-residential addresses and there are extended watering times for watering trees, shrubs and flowers. Edible plants are exempt from regulations.

For more information about water conservation and the City’s new lawn signs, visit pittmeadows.ca/water.
 
For more information please contact:
Tia O’Grady
Manager of Communications and Civic Engagement
City of Pitt Meadows
togrady@pittmeadows.ca