AUSTIN (KXAN) — Various cities and water suppliers implemented water restrictions, which would prohibit either indoor or outdoor water usage, depending on the city.
City of Georgetown
On Friday, the City of Georgetown temporarily enacted and enforced Stage 3 of the Drought Contingency Plan, due to sustained high water use nearing system treatment capacity, the city said in a news release. The restriction is effective immediately from July 14 through July 17, according to the city.
This means watering with an irrigation system or hose-end sprinkler is prohibited during this time, the city said. Furthermore, the city will decide early next week whether to extend or increase said restrictions.
Additionally, the city said the water is safe to drink. However, eliminating outdoor water usage is critical to keeping the water safe and avoiding boil water notices.
City of Blanco
In a social media post Friday, the City of Blanco said due to distribution challenges within its water supply company, it officially announced the highest level of immediate water emergency conditions at Stage 6.
“Please stop all unnecessary water usage until further notice. This includes immediately stopping all outdoor usage (except for giving drinking water to livestock animals). We have already stopped all industrial usage. We will keep you up to date as the situation develops,” the city said on social media.
City of Leander
Effective immediately, the City of Leander initiated Phase 3 water conservation measures, which limits outdoor watering to hand-held only, the city confirmed on its website. Residential and commercial Leander water customers should turn off irrigation systems completely and limit other nonessential uses until further notice, according to the city.
The city is taking the action due to increased water demand and reduced intake from the Brushy Creek Regional Utility Authority (BCRUA) raw water barge in Lake Travis, the website said. Recently, BCRUA officials noticed a reduction in raw water intake due to the failure of several raw water pumps on the facility’s floating barge. BCRUA officials were working to troubleshoot the issue and bring the city’s raw water intake up to full capacity.
Splash pads and pools will remain open this weekend, and staff will re-assess next week, according to the city.
Manville Water Supply
Manville Water Supply, located in Coupland, said it implemented mandatory Stage 3 water restrictions effective immediately, which restricts non-essential water use and all outdoor watering to one day a week, according to Manville Water Supply Corp.
Due to extremely hot temperatures, high demand on the system and drought conditions Manville has reached the conditions listed as “triggering criteria” for Stage 3 water restrictions in our Drought Contingency plan.
“This restriction is essential in order to conserve our water supply and to protect the integrity of the water supply facilities, with particular regard for domestic water use, sanitation, and fire protection, and to protect and preserve public health, welfare, and safety,” Manville Water Supply said in an email to KXAN.
Manville water customers’ watering schedule:
Residential
Odd addresses -Monday
Even addresses – Wednesday
Commercial & Multifamily
All addresses – Friday
NO weekend watering permitted.
Furthermore, no outdoor watering is allowed between the hours of 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., the water supplier said. Water with a hand-held hose, hand-held bucket, by drip irrigation or with a permanent automatic sprinkler system during designated day and time. Watering with hose-end sprinklers is prohibited.