Archives > Allen American > News
Print
E-mail
Comment
Rate
RSS
Share
Water district to consider Stage 4 restrictions
By Conner Hammett, chammett@acnpapers.com
Just two months after implementing Stage 3 water restrictions, the North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) is considering going to Stage 4 -- the highest level of water conservation measures.
The district's board of directors will meet Jan. 26 to discuss the possibility of the additional restrictions and could decide whether or not they will proceed with them that day.
Under Stage 4, all residential and commercial outdoor watering would be prohibited, as would irrigation of new landscaping, washing vehicles and permits for the construction of pools. The watering of foundations and trees would still be allowed for up to two hours per day, but only with a hand-held hose, soaker hose or a drip irrigation system.
Ron Robertson, owner of Robertson Pools, a Coppell-based pool contractor with an office in Allen, said the restrictions will shut down the entire pool building industry in North Texas.
"I understand there's a problem, but there could be another solution," he said. "They need to give the industry if nothing else an opportunity to sit down with them and say 'What can we do? You're going to restrict us, but restrict us to what point?' instead of just cutting us off."
Robertson said two-thirds of his 125-employee workforce would be affected if Stage 4 is enacted, and the restrictions could put companies that rely solely on pool construction and renovation for income out of business.
Robertson said he is working with several of his competitors and the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals to draft a letter to the NTMWD warning of the impact on businesses and is talking to an attorney about other options should the restrictions come to pass.
"Today this has just been phone call after phone call to industry people, saying 'What's our next step and what do we do?'"
Lake Lavon is currently at a depth of 480 feet, the same level it was at when Stage 3 restrictions were called in October. But the NTMWD could exhaust its share of water from Jim Chapman Lake, the water rights of which the district owns 45 percent, by mid-January, said Mike Rickman, deputy director for the NTMWD.
"That reservoir is supplied by several utilities," he said. "Even though the Corps website will show it's got about 30 percent of its capacity left, our share of the reservoir will have been transferred to Lavon sometime in January."
Compounding the problem has been the district's inability to pump water from Lake Texoma since fall 2009 due to zebra mussels, an invasive species which can infest other lakes if Texoma is pumped to the district's other reservoirs.
Zebra mussels usually stop spawning once the water temperature drops below 54 degrees, and the district will be able to pump from Texoma as soon as the mussels are non-detectable in the water and approval is granted by the Army Corps of Engineers, Rickman said.
Even with approval, however, the district would only be able to pump from Texoma through mid-March. Given the design of the lake's pumps, only 25 to 30 percent of the lake's capacity would be able to be exploited during that window, Rickman said -- meaning Stage 4 restrictions would likely come into play even with the additional water.
"That facility is designed to move your supply over a 10 month period, and we only have about two and a half to three months to move it in," he said. "You don't have enough pipeline or horsepower to move the water in a short enough period time."
Local reaction
Steve Massey, director of community services for the city of Allen, said the rapid approach of Stage 4 is no surprise given this winter's weather patterns and low rainfall. The city will comply with the restrictions in full if and when they are called and continue enforcing all previous restrictions, he said.
"There will be considerable discussion between member cities about what each city will do, coordinated by NTMWD," he said, "but for now, we will go by Stage 4 of our drought contigency plan."
Massey said the issue could become even more serious if the NTMWD's member cities fail to enforce Stage 4 restrictions. The district could turn to allocating water, meaning cities would only be allowed to use a preset amount of water each month, to effectively conserve if cities fail to comply, he said.
"We need every member city to take it seriously, to realize that allocating water at Stage 4 is much worse than just going to Stage 4," he said.
In October, the city of Allen swore in 45 community service employees to hand out citations for violations of Stage 3 restrictions, which started Nov. 1. So far, the city has given 571 citations and 398 warnings for watering violations, Massey said.
"We suspect at the start of Stage 4, [we will have to have] a full force effort again," he said. "We'll have to put all those people back out or use more water than desired, and we will face the onerous implications of water being allocated."
Massey said the city will start mailing fliers and putting up new signage reflecting the new restrictions in February if Stage 4 is called at the Jan. 26 meeting.
"We'll do as much and probably more than what we did when we went to Stage 3," he said.
Rickman said the only thing that could prevent Stage 4 restrictions would be a turnaround in prevailing weather conditions. The U.S. Drought Monitor currently lists Collin County as being in the first level of drought conditions, or "moderately dry." A study released in October by the National Weather Service said North Texas would require 24 to 28 inches of rain in a six-month period to pull itself out of the drought.
If nothing changes, Rickman said, Stage 4 restrictions could be enacted as early as April.
"We have projected in our models that if the weather conditions continue as they have been, then we will need into move into Stage 4 sometime before summer," he said.
The NTMWD is still exploring long-term solutions, Rickman said. The district is in the process of designing a pipeline that extends from Lake Texoma to the Wylie treatment plant, bypassing any water sources that could be infested by zebra mussels if water from Texoma was introduced.
Expansions to the district's wetlands project, which uses a man-made wetland to polish water from the Trinity River's East Fork and send it to Lavon, could also result in an increase in available water, Rickman said. Both projects could be completed as early as June 2013.
For the short term, the NTMWD is still considering purchasing water from other utilities which may have excess supply. Rickman said he hopes a contract will be prepared within the next 60 to 90 days, though with water demands likely to double over the summer, it will do little to prevent Stage 4 restrictions.
"We would just like to enocurage all citizens to be on board with this, and we're doing the best we can with it under this perfect storm: trying to make sure we have water for essential needs," he said.
The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
mightyjoeyoung wrote on Jan 28, 2012 9:53 PM:
" It seems like the answer would be to freeze the zebra muscels and open up the water supply. "
You must register with a valid email to post comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Only your Member ID will be posted with the comments.
Registered users sign in here:
Become a Registered User
- Return to: News «
- Home «
- Top of Page ^
