New order slashes water use to protect North Okanagan salmon amid drought

A new fish protection order for the Bessette Creek watershed in the Thompson Okanagan is temporarily restricting water use to help safeguard Chinook salmon, which are under significant threat due to severe drought in the region.Effective Friday, Aug. 28, 131 surface-water and groundwater licence holders and transitioning groundwater users in the watershed have to stop watering for a number of specific uses, according to a release from the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.Bessette