Conservation district has good news on drought level

The Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District has taken a step back from the most severe drought stage – Stage IV – and after a brief stint in Stage III, has declared the area to be at Stage II Alarm Drought, the least severe stage of drought. But aquifer watchers know that a hot, dry summer could mean a return to the most serious drought stage.

The district entered Stage IV Exceptional Drought on Dec. 14, 2023, for the first time in its 36-year history, according to district spokesperson Shay Hlavaty. The district had been anticipating the need to declare Stage IV since last summer.

She explained that Stage IV declaration restrictions took effect on Jan. 1 as a result of the low level of the Lovelady monitor well, one of two drought-trigger determinants. It hit a 10-day average of 456.9 feet-mean sea level (ft-msl), nearly 36 feet below its average. Since measurements began in 1949, the average water level elevation for the Lovelady monitor well has been is 492.8 ft-msl.

Hlavaty told the Austin Monitor that the district entered Stage II last Friday, March 1, as a result of rain in January and February. The district, which stretches from South Austin to San Marcos, received an average of 6 inches of rain in January, and an additional 1.5 inches in February, increasing flow in the Blanco River as well as area creeks. Hlavaty noted that the district’s monitor wells and spring flow gauges registered the increased water levels for both the Edwards and Trinity aquifers.

At the conservation district board’s Feb. 8 meeting, directors transitioned from the Stage IV level to Stage III Critical Drought. Directors had been concerned about falling water levels for months, and users have been encouraged to severely restrict water usage. The district’s monitor wells showed that the additional rainfall in February would allow the district to return to Stage II, which the district declared on March 1.

Although the area is now in its least severe drought stage, the district is still asking people to continue to conserve. Some people might think they can “go back to business as usual,” but that is not the case, Hlavaty said. Forecasters think that Central Texas could be facing a third summer of high heat and low rain. People should not go back to watering lawns because they think the drought is over, she said. “We really want people to be cautious with their water utilization.”

The drought declarations require those holding permits to pump less water. That could be as low as 20 percent of what would be permitted under normal conditions, according to Erin Swanson, regulatory compliance manager. Permit holders – generally companies that sell to end-users – have the responsibility for reducing water usage. If the permit holder fails to live up to their agreement, the district can impose a fine, Swanson said.

The city of Buda and the city of Kyle are permittees, and as such they are required to meet a monthly target volume, but it’s up to them to figure out how to do that, Swanson said.

Photo by USGS, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

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