Drought Prompts Stage 1 Water Restrictions Throughout Austin

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Water utility officials said Thursday they are implementing new restrictions on water use in light of drought conditions in Central Texas that have caused drops of lake levels to dangerously low depths.

As a result of the climactic conditions, the Austin Water utility has implemented Stage 1 restrictions. This means resident can only water on assigned days and times and wash their vehicles with a bucket or via use of a hose with automatic shutoff.

Water restrictions not only apply to homeowners, but those owning restaurants and other businesses. Those restrictions can be found on the City of Austin website.

FIND YOUR WATERING DAY HERE

Concurrent to those announced restrictions, the U.S. Drought Monitor on Thursday released a newly produced map showing Travis County to be under moderate drought conditions. Some portions of Williamson County are worse off, under severe drought conditions.

Recent rain did little to alleviate those conditions following weeks of sustained dry conditions and a three-week span of sweltering, triple-digit heat throughout the region. According to official data found on Drought.gov, just 18.99 percent of the state has avoided falling under drought conditions, compared to 86.44 percent in last year's comparable period and down from 22.28 percent last week.

A quick glance at Texas lake levels dramatically illustrates the effect of drought, each body of water below optimum depths.

On their website, Austin Water officials outlined details related to Stage 1 restrictions:

STAGE 1 RESTRICTIONS

• You may water only on your assigned day(s) and times.
  • Residential
    • Hose-end Sprinklers - two days per week - midnight to 10 a.m. and/or 7 p.m. to midnight
    • Automatic irrigation - one day per week - midnight to 8 a.m. and/or 7 p.m. to midnight (Residential customers may also water a second day with a hose-end sprinkler)
  • Commercial / Multi-family / Public Schools
    • Hose-end Sprinklers or Automatic Irrigation - one day per week - midnight to 8 a.m. and/or 7 p.m. to midnight
• Wasting water is prohibited
• Washing vehicles at home is permitted with an auto shut-off hose or bucket
• Charity car washes may only be held at a commercial carwash
• Fountains must recirculate water
• Restaurants may not serve water unless requested by a customer
• Patio misters at commercial properties (including restaurants and bars) may only operate between 4 p.m. and midnight
• Commercial power/pressure washing equipment must meet efficiency requirements

EXEMPTIONS

The following are allowed at any time on any day of the week:

• Watering with drip irrigation, a hand-held hose or a refillable container
• Watering trees with a Treegator®, soaker hose or automatic tree bubbler
• Watering vegetable gardens with a soaker hose
• Pressure washing sidewalk/driveway/deck/patio/paved areas/home siding/fence

Lower Colorado River Authorityofficials recently announced efforts aimed at water conservation by awarding $171,000 for projects in Central Texas. Announced last month, the projects are expected to save some 57 million gallons of water a year from the Highland Lakes.

The conservation cost-share grants, which require at least a 50 percent match in cash or in-kind services from recipients, include:

• $6,960 to the Travis County Water Control and Improvement District-Point Venture to replace aging water lines to reduce water loss. The project is expected to save about 6 acre-feet of water from the Highland Lakes ̶ roughly 1.95 million gallons ̶ annually.
• $21,228 to the Village of Briarcliff to replace more than 900 water meters with ultrasonic meters connected to a cellular network. The current meters are read manually once a month, but the new meters will automatically monitor meters hourly, helping detect leaks more quickly. The project is expected to save about 18 acre-feet of water from the Highland Lakes ̶ roughly 6 million gallons ̶ annually.
• $43,479 to the City of Lago Vista to modify an existing treated effluent line to allow accumulated re-use water to be saved for future beneficial use instead of being disposed of immediately on cedar trees. The project is expected to save about 52 acre-feet of water from the Highland Lakes ̶ roughly 17 million gallons ̶ annually.
• $100,000 to the Lakeway Municipal Utility District to extend an existing treated effluent line to allow more than 320 nearby homes to irrigate landscapes with treated effluent rather than potable water. The project is expected to save about 97 acre-feet of water from the Highland Lakes ̶ roughly 32 million gallons ̶ annually.

"Lakes Buchanan and Travis are vital water supply reservoirs for Central Texas," John Hofmann, LCRA executive vice president of Water, said on July 18 in announcing the effort. "More than a million people, plus businesses and industries rely on the Highland Lakes. Using this resource responsibly and implementing conservation projects like these helps protect our water supply."

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