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CRD Weekly Water Watch 2010-present: Sooke & Goldstream lakes CRD reservoir levels


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#541 Cassidy

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Posted 05 January 2019 - 05:55 PM

The Sooke Lake dam was raised in 2002 in order to end any capacity issues, but water restrictions have never been removed.

 

https://www.crd.bc.c...vrsn=550423ca_2



#542 todd

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Posted 05 January 2019 - 09:56 PM

There has been a tunnel cored from the Leech River to Sooke Lake. It is unused to date though (and is sealed currently). ..........

.................

 

......Leech Watershed isn't anticipated to be a required source of CRD water for another 50+ years (and there are many who say it will never be needed). ...........

 

 

....A tunnel linking the Leech River to the Sooke Lake Reservoir was built in the 1980s in anticipation of water demands, but intake and outlet facilities have yet to be put in. ........

 

https://www.timescol...-from-1.1065010

 

WTF?



#543 tjv

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Posted 05 January 2019 - 11:19 PM

why do you suggest carrying capacity is near max now on heavy demand says? never heard that suggested. just reservoir capacity.

While I don't know the specific circumstances in Victoria, I am a civil engineer and did spend my early career designing and constructing the major trunk mains, peaking reservoirs and pumping stations elsewhere

 

If I recall correctly the CRD has never installed a new trunk main from the reservoir other than replacing an existing one 15 years ago that was ending its service life.



#544 Mike K.

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Posted 03 March 2019 - 07:47 PM

Feb 24, 2019

Sooke: 100%
Goldstream: 57.8%
Total: 96%

But here’s something interesting. According to the stats, the average rainfall for feb is 191.8mm, but this feb only saw 55.2mm. Now you might wonder, how can we be at only 29% of the average rainfall? That’s because for whatever reason snowfall amounts are not recorded by the CRD for the purposes of recording precipitation.

Nevertheless, 2018-2019 has seen 106% of average cumulative rainfall to-date even without the snow.

One can’t help noticing that if our regional discussions about drinking water rely on CRD weather data, and precipitation is obviously the most critical data point when discussing the water supply, that not recording snowfall amounts as precipitation leaves a gaping hole that data? Despite nearly 70cm of snow having been recorded last month in Victoria and no doubt much more in the Sooke hills, the actual precipitation amount is at 29% of the average, and when viewed a year from now the conclusion will be that February was much drier than the average, not that the region experienced one of the heaviest snowfalls of the last decade.

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#545 LJ

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Posted 03 March 2019 - 07:55 PM

You know for sure the CRD doesn't count snowfall as precip? That sounds very odd to me.


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#546 Mike K.

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Posted 03 March 2019 - 07:58 PM

They only identify precipitation as rainfall, hence the reading of less than 60mm for the month (through Feb 24th).

The Sooke hills likely had a meter, or more, of snow last month.

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#547 dasmo

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Posted 03 March 2019 - 08:02 PM

We didn’t get a lot of rain and divide the snowfall by 10 -15 to get the precipitation and that might be the number?

#548 Mike K.

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Posted 03 March 2019 - 08:52 PM

Environment Canada says the Victoria International Airport weather station recorded 96.1mm of precipitation, 25.7mm of which was from rain and 68.5mm from snow.

 

The Sooke Hills tend to have significantly higher amounts of rainfall, so the 55.2mm number from the CRD makes sense but even then it's far below 96.1mm as recorded at the airport.


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#549 Victoria Watcher

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Posted 04 March 2019 - 03:39 AM

maybe contact the crd and shake this down some more.



#550 Mike K.

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 06:55 AM

Sooke reservoir 100% full as of March 31.


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#551 Victoria Watcher

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 07:08 AM

despite the 14th driest march on record at gonzales. following the record snow in february.

#552 Mike K.

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 07:13 AM

From September through to the end of March, rainfall is at 94% of average for the period. It would have been much, much higher than 94% if our February precipitation had fallen as rain (as we recall, the CRD does not include snowfall in its precipitation calculations).


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#553 Mike K.

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Posted 16 April 2019 - 07:48 AM

Sooke is 99.7% full as of April 14th.

 

April's rainfall is already at 64% (57.3mm) of the monthly average of 89.5mm. We're at 95% of September 1 - April 14 rainfall average (so much for the drought, drought and drought fears).

 

We're on a collision course yet again with rising water consumption (due to population growth, obviously) and an inadequately sized reservoir that overflows in the winter and gets low in the summer. We can scream conservation from the rafters, but ultimately that leads to higher rates (which we found out when we last were ordered to heavily conserve) or, well, higher rates.

 

The daily water use average so far this month is 110.9 million litres. The April average between 2014 and 2018 was 106.8, or 3.7% less. Our population grows at a rate of, you guessed it, 0.7-1.1% per annum.


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#554 spanky123

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Posted 16 April 2019 - 08:03 AM

^Earlier this month after we had a record warm day and 10 days of sunshine CFAX was also blanketing their talk shows on the drought and global warming platforms. 

 

As you point out though, we are bang on average for rainfall and running 2-4 degrees cooler than average temperatures.


Edited by spanky123, 16 April 2019 - 08:05 AM.


#555 Mike K.

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Posted 02 May 2019 - 07:53 PM

Through April 28th the water watch shows precipitation for the month was at 101% of the average. On the 28th the large reservoir was at 99.5% of capacity.

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#556 Nparker

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Posted 02 May 2019 - 08:29 PM

...On [April] 28th the large reservoir was at 99.5% of capacity.

It's a good thing then that mandatory watering restrictions are now in effect, after all we are a full half percent below full capacity!  :eek:


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#557 Victoria Watcher

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Posted 03 May 2019 - 02:48 AM

California is officially out of their drought.

#558 tjv

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Posted 03 May 2019 - 05:59 AM

Through April 28th the water watch shows precipitation for the month was at 101% of the average. On the 28th the large reservoir was at 99.5% of capacity.

Interesting to see Goldstream Reservoir was only at 58.5%, I wonder why it is so low



#559 Mike K.

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Posted 03 May 2019 - 07:41 AM

It’s always that low, so I think they must be constantly flushing it to maintain a creek or river flow?

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#560 Sparky

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Posted 03 May 2019 - 09:02 AM

It's a good thing then that mandatory watering restrictions are now in effect, after all we are a full half percent below full capacity!  :eek:


There is only so much water.

Watering restrictions are about saving some to drink.

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