Sooke Lake Reservoir reaches max capacity at fastest rate in decades
The Sooke Lake Reservoir reached 100 per cent capacity on Monday, according to the Capital Regional District (CRD).
CRD spokesperson Andy Orr says it's the fastest the reservoir has filled up since it was raised to increase capacity in 2002.
Generally, the reservoir does not reach maximum capacity until late December or January. This year, however, historic rains have caused the reservoir to fill up fast.
Orr says that there are currently no water quality problems linked to the reservoir, as the island braces for as much as 200 millimetres of rain in some regions starting Monday evening.
According to the CRD, overflows can occur if heavy rainfall overloads the region's sewer system.
If an overflow occurs, pipes at emergency outfall locations in Oak Bay and East Saanich will open.
The CRD notes that it recently built infrastructure to increase capacity of the Sooke area's sewage system, "which will significantly reduce the frequency and duration of overflows during periods of heavy rain and should eliminate all unscreened overflows."
However, the regional district says that some municipalities will continue to see screened overflows, including pump stations in Oak Bay, until infrastructure upgrades in that region come online in 2030.
"The CRD will continue to work with core area municipalities under our liquid waste management plan to continue to reduce the duration and frequency of overflows as much as possible," said Orr on Monday.
As of Sunday afternoon, wastewater discharge notices remained active along two shorelines in Oak Bay and Saanich.
One notice is posted between Tarn Place in Oak Bay and Seaview Road in Saanich, and one is active between Radcliffe Lane and Trafalgar Park in Oak Bay.
Residents are advised not to enter the water along these shorelines as wastewater could pose a health risk.
Correction
A previous version of this story stated that the Sooke Lake Reservoir filled at its fastest rate since it was first installed. In fact, the CRD says it filled at the fastest rate since it was upgraded in 2002.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.