As water restrictions come into effect in Merritt today, the city says there are no concerns over drinking water.

Director of Corporate Services Sean Smith says the city will start to pull residential drinking water from the Nicola aquifer as opposed to the Coldwater aquifer.

“The Kengard well is high quality water,” he told Radio NL. “It does has some higher mineral content but as far as health goes, it’s completely safe.”

He also says staff aren’t too concerned about the condition of the Coldwater aquifer at this time.

“The far greater concern is the water levels in the river, as opposed to the water levels in the aquifer,” Smith said. “And so in terms of service to residents in having water, that’s less of a concern than the potential environmental impacts on the fact that we have an entire river that’s near bone dry.”

Watering lawns and washing vehicles is also restricted as of today, and Smith says those restrictions will not be lifted until conditions improve significantly.

He says the city doesn’t have a policy or bylaw to restrict water consumption for businesses like car washes, but adds it’s something the city could look into for the future.

“Whether we’ll move that direction or not, we just need to explore that option,” Smith said. “We have given the most impassioned plea to encourage all business to reduce their water use.”

These restrictions are the furthest the city has ever gone in implementing watering conservation measures, according to Smith.