(Springfield, MO)--The drought in the Ozarks means many communities may need to start thinking about conserving water.
It's hot and dry, and that's why Carolyn Pentecost is more worried about her lawn than usual.
"It's when you walk across the grass it's kind of 'crunch crunch crunch,'" Pentecost said. "And I know if it gets any dryer it will be dirt pretty soon."
Pentecost said she normally lets the rain take care of her lawn most of the time, but she's had to crank up the sprinklers lately.
"If it rains a little bit I might water it every other week or something like that."
Joel Alexander of City Utilities said that, on average, most Americans use about 50 gallons of water each day.
City Utilities tips on saving water
That means the water in the city's reservoir is starting to shrink-about one percent each day. Right now, levels at Fellows and McDaniel Lakes are at about 80 percent full.
"When it gets down to a level of 60 percent, we will have to institute those emergency water conservation steps," said Alexander. "We can store the water, we can treat the water, we can deliver the water. But we can't create the water."
City Utilities is bringing in water from Stockton Lake. Alexander said It's not enough to make up the difference, but it's not time to panic yet.
"We're looking at being able to go without any additional rain through the summer months.," he said. "It's not a crisis. It's not at an emergency level by any means."
It would take about 20 more weeks of drought for the lake to reach a critical level. That means it's not time to stop showering yet. But Alexander says it is time to think ahead.
"There are things you can do to help protect the amount of water we have here."
He recommends small changes, like following a watering schedule, which Pentecost said she already does.
"It would be an even bigger inconvenience if we didn't have any water or we were restricted completely or something like that if our reservoir ran out of water," she said.
It's hot and dry, and that's why Carolyn Pentecost is more worried about her lawn than usual.
"It's when you walk across the grass it's kind of 'crunch crunch crunch,'" Pentecost said. "And I know if it gets any dryer it will be dirt pretty soon."
Pentecost said she normally lets the rain take care of her lawn most of the time, but she's had to crank up the sprinklers lately.
"If it rains a little bit I might water it every other week or something like that."
Joel Alexander of City Utilities said that, on average, most Americans use about 50 gallons of water each day.
City Utilities tips on saving water
That means the water in the city's reservoir is starting to shrink-about one percent each day. Right now, levels at Fellows and McDaniel Lakes are at about 80 percent full.
"When it gets down to a level of 60 percent, we will have to institute those emergency water conservation steps," said Alexander. "We can store the water, we can treat the water, we can deliver the water. But we can't create the water."
City Utilities is bringing in water from Stockton Lake. Alexander said It's not enough to make up the difference, but it's not time to panic yet.
"We're looking at being able to go without any additional rain through the summer months.," he said. "It's not a crisis. It's not at an emergency level by any means."
It would take about 20 more weeks of drought for the lake to reach a critical level. That means it's not time to stop showering yet. But Alexander says it is time to think ahead.
"There are things you can do to help protect the amount of water we have here."
He recommends small changes, like following a watering schedule, which Pentecost said she already does.
"It would be an even bigger inconvenience if we didn't have any water or we were restricted completely or something like that if our reservoir ran out of water," she said.
Comments
And what about MSU fountains using about 40,000 gallons per day to keep them refilled?
My O.
June 28, 2012 at 7:44 am
