CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — It's been years, but the City of Corpus Christi is once again dangerously close to stage two water restrictions as our water supply continues to diminish.
Presently, we're still under stage one water restrictions. However, Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni said this could change if we don't receive much-needed rain.
The city has been closely monitoring water levels and waiting for substantial rain that has yet to arrive. Now, officials expect to further restrict water use.
"Today it's 31.3 percent which is a low point. It hasn't been this low in some time. The last time we were at this level was 2015," he said.
Zanoni said we could reach stage two within the first couple of weeks in January.
"If we do reach 30 percent and we do enact stage two, then to get out of stage two our reservoirs have to be at 40 percent. So it could take some time to get out of that pattern of once every other week watering," he said.
Once 'every other' week watering will be the biggest change once we hit stage two.
Zanoni said substantial rain might not arrive until early summer, and even then, it's difficult to predict if it will be enough to alleviate restrictions.
3NEWS Chief Meteorologist Alan Holt provided insight on the accuracy of the summer prediction.
"The winter months here in south Texas are not as lucrative with respect to rainfall," he said. "The summer we get more on average. This winter though, we are in an El Nino that tends to produce a little more frequency on the rain episodes. The big key to whether we get out of these drought restrictions, where does the rain fall. We need it in the water shed. Will it fall there? It's a tough question to answer."
Zanoni said a tropical rain event next summer might be necessary to restore the watershed to normal levels. However, he noted one positive aspect for the entire state.
"Our residents here use less water than most people do in Texas. So we have very good habits in Corpus Christi on how to conserve and not overuse water," he said.
Zanoni emphasized that further education is crucial to maintaining a mindset focused on conserving every drop.
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