Unprecedented water restrictions on Sunshine Coast amid fears communities could run out

Unprecedented water restrictions take effect on the Sunshine Coast just before midnight Tuesday as severe drought conditions worsen.

The area is under a local state of emergency that was declared Monday. Swimming pools, breweries, non-medical cannabis producers, businesses that bottle water, and those that transport and install concrete, cement and gravel are among those being instructed to halt the use of potable water.

Persephone Brewing Company is one of the businesses impacted and will stop brewing beer once the restrictions take effect at 11:59 p.m. They also can’t package any products because they can’t clean the machinery used in the canning line.

“If we’re lucky we have maybe a two to three week supply of beer in kegs and in cans so we can keep our tasting room alive,” said David Schnider, the company’s marketing manager.

The area has two main water supplies – Chapman Lake and Edwards Lake – and both are at dangerously low levels. Officials with the Sunshine Coast Regional District have had to install siphons to push water into Chapman Creek to the water treatment plant. And if there is a little bit of rain in the coming days, it could put one of the minor water sources out of commission, according to Remko Rosenboom, director of the Emergency Operations Centre.

“Then most likely that water will be turbid and we won’t be able to treat it anymore, so we’ll have to take that water source offline,” Remko said.

Officials say they have made certain that essential services, such as the hospital and fire departments, will still have water available. But some communities could run out in the next few weeks.

“How early? That will totally depend on if we receive a little bit of rain between now and then, which we might, also depends on how much water the community is actually using,” Remko said. “If we run out of water, what I mean is that we are not able to guarantee that everybody on the coast is able to open their taps and get running water out of it.”

Water restrictions do come into effect most summers on the Sunshine Coast. In fact, outdoor water use has been banned since August, meaning farmers haven’t been able to water their crops.

Schnider said he couldn’t understand why businesses could still brew beer while the crops were dying.

“It's’ been hard to watch out community go through this and see small scale farmers not be able to produce crops we rely on,” Schnider said. “This is ultimately climate change when we think about it and there will need to be some serious decisions being made.”