CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — With near triple digit heat and no rain in sight, cities in the Coastal Bend have started to enact their drought contingency plans to try and conserve water.
The City of Corpus Christi measures water levels based off of two resources, which are Lake Corpus Christi and Choke Canyon. Currently, the City's water levels are at 43.7 percent. Though the water levels haven't yet hit the normal trigger point for water restrictions, Corpus Christi officials have asked residents to begin stage one of their drought contingency plan.
Here are all of the local areas that have water restrictions in place.
Alice
The City of Alice has begun Stage One of their Drought Contingency Plan.
The goal of Stage One is to achieve a voluntary 10 percent reduction in total water use and daily water demand, according to a press release from the City of Alice.
Residents and area businesses are asked to practice the following.
- Voluntarily limit irrigation of landscaped areas with hose-end sprinklers or automatic irrigation systems between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. as well as 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. on designated watering days:
- Sundays & Thursdays for those whose street addresses end in an even number (0,2,4,6,8)
- Saturdays & Wednesdays for those whose street addresses end in an odd number (1,3,5,7,9)
2. Water customers requested to practice water conservation and to minimize or discontinue water uses for non-essential purposes.
Corpus Christi
Stage One water restrictions were declared Tuesday, June 14 for the City of Corpus Christi as drought conditions persist with little rain in the forecast.
Although combined lake levels typically need to drop to 40 percent capacity before triggering the City's drought contingency plan, City Manager Peter Zanoni told 3NEWS that he wants residents to get a head start at practicing good water conservation habits.
Stage One of the City's Drought Contingency Plan includes the following restrictions:
- Residents can use their irrigation system only once a week on their trash collection day before 10 a.m. and after 6 p.m.
- City crews will prioritize response to repairs and leaks.
- The City will monitor Stage 1 compliance.
During Stage One, commercial car washes and landscape nurseries are not impacted. Residents are encouraged to follow these water-conscious conservation measures:
- Avoid water run-off on streets and sidewalks.
- Check for water leaks around your home.
- Wash full loads in your laundry and dishwasher.
Portland
The City of Portland has implemented stage one mandatory drought restrictions.
Restrictions went into effect for Corpus Christi on Tuesday. Portland purchases their water from the San Patricio Municipal Water District, which purchases water from the City of Corpus Christi. Under the purchase agreement, the City of Portland is contractually obligated to abide by the same restrictions as the City of Corpus Christi.
Here are the restrictions for Stage One:
- Limit sprinkler irrigation to one day per week. Watering day is the day of your weekly trash pick-up
- Those outside of city limits' watering day is Friday
- Irrigation and lawn watering are prohibited between 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Limit washing vehicles, motorbikes, boats, and trailers to 1x per week on designed watering day (trash pick-up day), unless using a bucket or a hose with a positive shutoff nozzle (including soaker hoses)
- Limit filling swimming pools and jacuzzi-like pools to one time per week on designated watering day
Send us an e-mail at news@kiiitv.com if there is a city in our area that isn't on this list that needs to be added.
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