Residents living in the Sydenham River watershed are being asked to voluntarily cut water use by 10 per cent.<\/p>\n
Published Oct 22, 2025 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 2 minute read<\/p>\n
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Brenda Wilkins gets ready for a run in light rain Wednesday at Canatara Park in Sarnia. Photo by Paul Morden \/The ObserverArticle content<\/p>\n
Residents of the Sydenham River watershed are being asked to voluntarily cut water use by 10 per cent following the declaration of Level 1 low water conditions by the St. Clair Region Conservation Authority.<\/p>\n
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A Level 1 low water condition is declared under the Ontario low water response program when a watershed receives 80 per cent or less of the normal precipitation during a three-month period, said Emily De Cloet, flood forecasting and warning coordinator with the authority.<\/p>\n
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\u201cAt this point, it\u2019s optional, but we\u2019re asking people to just be cognizant of their water usage,\u201d and cut back on uses that aren\u2019t necessary, such as washing cars, watering lawns and power washing driveways, she said.<\/p>\n
The authority covers areas of Lambton County, Chatham-Kent and Middlesex Country and includes the Sydenham River watershed, as well as smaller watersheds draining directly in southern Lake Huron, the St. Clair River and northeastern Lake St. Clair.<\/p>\n
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The last time the watershed experienced a low water condition was in 2015, De Cloet said.<\/p>\n
There are four levels in the provincial program, including normal conditions and Level 1 low water, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat it means is that we are seeing precipitation trends that are below what we would expect to be 80 per cent of normal,\u201d De Cloet said.<\/p>\n
The declaration is based on precipitation data collected throughout the watershed for July, August and September, as well as waterway flow data.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour inland rivers and creeks, you might notice that they\u2019re lower,\u201d De Cloet said. \u201cAnd those are quite important for ground water recharge.\u201d<\/p>\n