Austin enters Stage 1 watering restrictions

With record heat in May, brutal temperatures on the horizon and predictions of a dry, hot summer thanks to La Niña, it should come as no surprise that Austin has enacted watering restrictions. Austin Water implemented Stage 1 watering restrictions yesterday. Stage 1 reduces the hours that automatic irrigation systems can operate.

“Our community has embraced water conservation year-round and I’m confident they will step up to this additional restriction,” interim Austin Water Director Robert Goode said in a press release. The only change between Conservation Stage and Stage 1 is the reduction of automatic irrigation watering hours. “Watering only in the early morning or late evening hours, when temperatures are coolest, will help reduce unnecessary water loss through evaporation and that continues to support Austin’s water conservation efforts.” The restrictions were triggered by dropping lake levels; lakes Travis and Buchanan currently have a combined storage level of 1.409 million acre-feet of water, and that is expected to drop to 1.4 million acre-feet in the next few days.