Persistent dry conditions this summer have led the Pembina Valley Water Co-op (PVWC) and its 14 member municipalities to declare a State of Drought Emergency due to low water levels on the Red River. The declaration, effective Wednesday, July 28th, comes following a meeting a day prior that included Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development as well as Manitoba Emergency Measures Organization. "From June 25th to July 23rd, a twenty-eight day period, the flow in the Red River was reduced from 1,532 cubic feet per second (cfs) to 752 cfs. So, it's been reduced by half in a month," explains PVWC CEO, Greg Archibald. During this same period, Environment and Climate Change Canada reports the water level on the Red River at Emerson went down 20.5 inches, from 748.287 ft down to 746.578 ft above sea level.