Mayors from nearly every Okanagan municipality pledged their commitment to sustainable water use and urged residents to do the same this week.

The mayors joined students from 脡cole Glenmore Elementary at the kick-off event Thursday for Make Water Work, an annual campaign from the Okanagan Basin Water Board to encourage water conservation.

Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran made his pledge is to be more responsible when watering his garden and lawn.

乌鸦传媒淲e are becoming more and more urban,乌鸦传媒� said Basran. 乌鸦传媒淭hat means it乌鸦传媒檚 more important than ever that we make sure that the plants and our lawn get watered and not the pavement.乌鸦传媒�

The campaign, being in its ninth year, is an annual competition between Okanagan municipalities, one which Kelowna has never won.

乌鸦传媒淢y challenge is for the residents of Kelowna to take this seriously because it is a big deal,乌鸦传媒� said Basran.

The mayor urges the public to make sure 乌鸦传媒渨e are preserving water and making sure there is an abundant supply for not only tomorrow, but for many years to come.乌鸦传媒�

READ MORE: B.C.-Alberta feud a concern for Shuswap boat rental operations

The theme of this year乌鸦传媒檚 campaign is to practice water sustainability in gardens, adopting the floral ideas provided by the 乌鸦传媒淢ake Water Work in your yard乌鸦传媒� plant collection.

The collection is comprised of plants whose biological attributes allow them to survive in drought conditions.

The Glenmore students created their own school garden using the Make Water Work plant options as their guide.

乌鸦传媒淭he Hardy Ice Plant can get as high as three inches and spreads to about 20 (inches) and needs full sun and one drop (of water),乌鸦传媒� said Grade 5 student Maddie Boback.

Fellow student Cayla Kennedy explained how 乌鸦传媒渢he Cushion Spurge乌鸦传媒檚 height is 14 inches, it spreads up to 18 inches and in the full sun takes two water drops and in part sun, one water drop.乌鸦传媒�

Classmate Charley Dowhaniuk cited the Rose Glow Barberry 乌鸦传媒渟lowly reaches four feet wide and five feet high, is best in full sun and part shade and grows in any soil and needs to be watered regularly weekly, or more often in extreme heat.乌鸦传媒�

These are just three plants on the thorough and extensive list that can be found on the website.

READ MORE: Obesity surgery benefits may be bigger for teens than adults

乌鸦传媒淲e learned about why you want to use waterized plants to use less water,乌鸦传媒� said Connor Brasnett, a Grade 5 student in charge of building the wooden structure of the gardens. 乌鸦传媒淚t was really cool and fun because we didn乌鸦传媒檛 have to do school work.乌鸦传媒�

The school garden project had the support of many stakeholders to help the students along the way.

乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檝e been working with my colleague, Lisa Marques, to teach our students about how we can use water more wisely in the Okanagan,乌鸦传媒� said Katie Wihak, a Grade 5 French immersion teacher.

乌鸦传媒�(The students) were definitely really excited to work together, to use their hands and to see something come to fruition.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檝e been able to do this because of our administrators and the parents who came and helped as well as reaching out to the community and having their support,乌鸦传媒� she said. 乌鸦传媒淪o it乌鸦传媒檚 really a group effort.乌鸦传媒�

Although the event is over, that isn乌鸦传媒檛 stopping Glenmore from continuing on the track they乌鸦传媒檝e begun.

乌鸦传媒淥ur goal is to turn this space into an outdoor learning centre,乌鸦传媒� explained Wihak. 乌鸦传媒淓ventually we want to build a pergola so there will be some shade for the students and we can work and play outside.乌鸦传媒�

The OBWB says nearly a quarter of all water used in the Okanagan is doused on household lawns and gardens.

The valley is already at a disadvantage by having less water per person than anywhere else in Canada, despite having one of the highest usage rates per person.