News
October 16, 2007
Raleigh Prohibits Lawn Irrigation Effective Oct. 23; NOAA Forecasts Winter Of Drought
The drought will persist through the winter. That is the forecast issued Oct. 18 in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) first update to the 2007-08 U.S. winter outlook. The update confirms NOAA’s earlier prediction for above-average temperatures for most of the nation and a continuation of drier than average conditions across much of the Southeast and Southwest.
“Our big concern continues to be the persistence of drought across large parts of the country’s southern tier,” said Michael Halpert, head of forecast operations and acting deputy director of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. “Nearly half of the Southeast is in extreme drought and water supplies have reached critical levels in some cities.”
The Triangle is suffering in exceptional drought. On Tuesday, Oct. 23, lawn irrigation will be prohibited for Raleigh water customers in a further effort to conserve water.
The Raleigh City Council approved amended Stage 1 mandatory water conservation restrictions and rules that:
- Prohibit watering by automatic or non-automatic spray irrigation systems:
- Prohibit washing vehicles at home;
- Prohibit watering by hose-end sprinklers and soaker hoses; and,
- Cease the issuance of lawn and landscape irrigation establishment permits.
This amended water conservation ordinance goes into effect Oct. 23. No lawn and landscape irrigation permits are being issued.
A first-time citation carries a $200 penalty. A second offense comes with at $1,000 penalty. A third citation would result in interruption of the customer’s water service. (A total of 302 first-time citations have been issued and 11 second-offense citations have been issued since the restrictions were put into place seven weeks ago.)
City officials are hoping that prohibiting lawn irrigation will dramatically reduce use. Since the water restrictions were put into effect, the use on “irrigation days” has averaged 36 percent more than the use recorded on days when irrigation is not allowed.
The restrictions apply to all City of Raleigh water customers, including those in nearby towns that have merged water and sewer systems with Raleigh. Those towns are Garner, Rolesville, Wake Forest, Knightdale, Wendell and Zebulon.
Other conservation measures continuing from Stage 1 water restrictions that have been in effect since Aug. 28 include:
- Limiting watering by hand-held hoses to two days a week (odd addresses on Tuesdays and Saturdays and even addresses on Wednesday and Sundays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.); and,
- Limiting pressure washing to Saturday and Sunday.
The water level in swimming or wading pools may be supplemented only to the amount necessary to allow proper operation and sanitary pool conditions. The conservation ordinance restricts the adding of water to decorative ponds or fountains to the amount needed to sustain aquatic life. Leaking water services or plumbing must be repaired within 24 hours of written notification by the City’s Public Utilities director.
Watering by low-volume drip irrigation is allowed at any time.
Indoor water uses that are addressed by the ordinance include:
- Drinking water will not be served in public restaurants, except upon request;
- Hotels will request that guests spending more than one night use their towels and bed linens more than once between laundering; and,
- Commercial and industrial customers must review their water uses and implement industry specific best management water conservation practices.
The continued absence of rain has drawn Falls Lake to 243.10 feet, which is 8.4 feet below the lake’s level when the water supply pool is full. (The latest date that the lake was at this level was May 24.) The lake’s present level represents 35 percent of the water supply pool. Falls Lake’s current level is only .37 feet above the all-time low of 242.73 feet that it fell to on Nov. 27, 1993.
The current 30-day pumpage demand for Raleigh water customers is 52.1 million gallons per day (MGD). Using this 30-day pumpage average, 95 days of water supply remain in Falls Lake; this projects to Jan. 22. (This assumes the worst case scenario of no rain fall during the period and use sustained at the current 30-day pumping average.)
The water pumpage for the first seven weeks the City of Raleigh has been under Stage 1 Mandatory Water Use Restrictions is 54.17 MGD, an 18 percent reduction compared to the 30-day pumpage average of 65.4 MGD prior to the implementation of the restrictions.
According to the National Weather Service’s rain gauge at Raleigh Durham International Airport, the area is 9.39 inches below normal for rainfall in 2007. Only 0.21 inches of rain has been record at RDU weather station in the first 18 days of October. NOAA reports a potential for some short-term relief exists for the next 10 days. A total of 0.04 inches of rain were measured at the gauge at Raleigh-Durham Airport on Oct. 18.
For more information on the Stage 1 amended water use restrictions, click here or contact the City of Raleigh Public Utilities Department at 857-4540 or the City of Raleigh Public Affairs Department at 890-3100.
Prepared by:
Jayne Kirkpatrick
Director
Public Affairs Department
For More Information Contact:
Ed Buchan
Water Conservation Specialist
Public Utilities Department
P.O. Box 590
Raleigh, NC 27602
919-857-4540
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