Metro Vancouver’s water restrictions are tightening Friday, as the regional district looks to stem the impact of drought on its water supplies.

Under the increased restrictions, Stage 2 includes:

• A total ban on lawn watering
• Trees, shrubs, and flowers can be watered by hand or using soaker hoses or drip irrigation at any time, or by using a sprinkler between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. any day
• Vegetable gardens can be watered at any time
• Aesthetic water features, such as pools, and fountains, cannot be filled or topped up
• Washing surfaces like driveways and sidewalks is prohibited, except in limited circumstances

Joanna Eyqeum, the managing director of Climate-Resilient Infrastructure at the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation within the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo, says Canadians often think of themselves as being “water-rich,” given all the lakes and rivers.

However, the problem with that is we don’t put a high value on water, and she thinks it’s time we do.

“Extreme weather is going to increase in the future and I think we focus a lot on the flood risk… but also at the same time, we’re expecting more drought conditions as well, particularly in the Prairies and B.C. and those extremes we need to adjust to,” Eyquem said, who moved to Canada from the U.K.