Outdoor watering restrictions would ‘punish’ Calgarians: McLean

A stock photo of Centre Street Bridge and the Bow River. (Unsplash/Maxime Doré)

A Calgary city councillor is speaking out about a proposed bylaw that would restrict when and how often Calgarians could water their lawns.

Calgary’s community development committee approved changes to the city’s water utility bylaw in a narrow 7-6 vote on Wednesday, featuring updates that would only allow outdoor watering three times a week.

Other updates to the bylaw include mandating that low-use water fixtures are installed in new builds and renovations at homes and businesses, and that Calgary city officials could restrict water use for anyone that violates water use rules.

In a social media post Thursday, Ward 13 Coun. Dan McLean said restrictions on outdoor watering would serve as a punishment for Calgarians when more than 20 per cent of the city’s water is “lost due to leaks and poor infrastructure.”

“Do you support spending millions of your property tax dollars to communicate and enforce PERMANENT outdoor water restrictions?” McLean wrote.

“I would much prefer this money be invested into upgrading our city-wide water infrastructure.”

The city’s water efficiency bylaw is part of a larger water efficiency plan, which aims to safeguard water supply in Calgary as it grapples with booming population growth, aging infrastructure and climate change.

The plan also aims to reduce the city’s water use by 20 per cent per capita by 2040.

It is expected to go up for debate in council later this month.

A major talking point in Calgary

Water has been a hot button issue in Calgary in recent years, and the approval of the water bylaw comes one day ahead of the city lifting water restrictions due to the completion of the first stage of repairs on the aging Bearspaw South feeder main.

That pipe experienced catastrophic breaks in June 2024 and December 2025, causing flooding in the city’s northwest and precipitating severe water restrictions in Calgary and the surrounding communities.