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Queens regional councillors are looking for ways to help prevent more water crises in the region. (Henryk Niestroj via Pixabay)<\/p><\/div>\n
While residents and businesses in the Liverpool area are being asked to cut back on water<\/a>, Region of Queens councillors want to find ways to improve communication and deal with any future water shortages.<\/span><\/p>\n Last week, councillors asked for a comprehensive staff report on the region\u2019s water and wastewater systems. They also want staff to develop a communication system to inform customers quickly when problems arise.<\/span><\/p>\n Municipal water users in Liverpool and parts of Brooklyn have been asked since Nov. 1 to restrict their water usage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Water levels in the Town Lake Reservoir are too low to support the town\u2019s usual consumption.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The region has warned people that without significant amounts of rain, more drastic measures may have to be taken.<\/span><\/p>\n Mayor Scott Christian said it\u2019s important to investigate longer-term solutions.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt has appropriately alarmed a lot of our residents and a number of members of council as well,” Christian said. <\/span><\/p>\n “So I think it\u2019s appropriate that we ask those questions in terms of how are we going to avoid situations like this in the future. What\u2019s our Plan B? How can we make sure that we do all we can to protect against known or foreseeable risks to the stability or the dependence of our water supply?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Other councillors said they were also worried how the water supply could be affected if the Liverpool Fire Department needs to respond to a fire.<\/span><\/p>\n Liverpool fire chief Trevor Munroe could not be reached for comment Monday.<\/span><\/p>\n District 3 Coun. Courtney Wentzell said the region needs to address problems with its existing infrastructure.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think we’ve got an infrastructure problem on the west side of Liverpool from the town well to Union Street. This is very, very serious. We need to know what Plan B is, we need to look ahead and we need to look after people that already hooked up before we start hooking up new<\/a>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The region has been criticized in the past for its efforts at spreading the word about water problems.<\/span><\/p>\n In summer 2023, the region imposed a boil-water order<\/a> on municipal users.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But some businesses and residents complained that they didn\u2019t know about it until days after the order was issued.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n People were also upset at what they saw as a lack of transparency about the reasons for the order.<\/span><\/p>\n Deputy Mayor Maddie Charlton said residents and businesses need to be informed more quickly and more directly.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m also running into a lot of residents who are unaware that they\u2019re supposed to decrease their water usage right now, so I think that this is critical that this happen so that residents can be alerted when needed in a very quick manner.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n CAO Cody Joudry could not give councillors a timeline for when staff will complete their report.<\/span><\/p>\n Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\n Listen to the audio version of this story below<\/p>\n