Officials are urging residents in New Brunswick to conserve water after half of the Canadian province experienced extreme drought in September.
What's happening?
Over the summer, many New Brunswickers began making small adjustments to their daily routines, such as taking shorter showers, to conserve water due to drought conditions, as reported by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
With stream flow remaining "below to much below normal in most of New Brunswick" at the end of September and much of the province still in a drought at the conclusion of October, according to a provincial water report and the Canadian Drought Monitor, officials warn wells could run dry over the winter and into next summer if New Brunswickers don't conserve water now.
"Until significant precipitation returns, every drop saved counts," environment minister Gilles LePage said in a statement, per the CBC.
Why is this important?
A warming climate has caused more frequent and severe droughts, depleting water supplies, increasing the risk of wildfires, and straining life-sustaining agricultural systems.
While intense bursts of rain are also part of shifting weather patterns induced by an abundance of heat-trapping pollution in the atmosphere — primarily from dirty fuels — drought-hardened ground doesn't absorb water effectively and may require months of rain to return to normal.
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The U.S. Geological Survey compared a rainstorm amid a drought to a medicine alleviating symptoms, though curing an underlying condition typically requires continual treatment.
Even though New Brunswick residents who saw their wells dry up said that a few recent rainy days have brought relief, per the CBC, it'll take more than a little precipitation to get things back on track — and frigid winter months could create additional issues.
"The ground will freeze up and there's no water going into the ground," New Brunswick Water Association executive director Roger Roy said. "Depending on the amount of snow that we have this year ... we might see wells drying up next summer also."
What's being done about this?
Some residents are considering spending thousands of dollars to dig deeper wells. The province is also asking residents to turn off their faucets when brushing their teeth and to fully load their laundry machines and dishwashers before running them, according to the CBC.
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