City to Enact Stage 2 Water Restrictions in April

Stage 2 water restrictions for Lubbock will go into effect on April 1^st, due to expected drought conditions.

The City of Lubbock says that entering Stage 2 of the Drought Contingency Plan is due to several factors, including the completion of the Lake Alan Henry pipeline project, which will likely not be completed until after summer’s peak water usage.

The City of Lubbock has also decided that the situation is dire enough that proven violators will no longer be given warnings, but rather a $200 fine from Code Enforcement.

A press release from the City outlines Stage 2 restrictions, including:

• Watering allowed only between 6 p.m. and 10 a.m.
• Landscape irrigation allowed only once per week
• Irrigation must be limited to 1 ½ inches of water
• Irrigation must be without significant runoff
• City operations and wholesale customers must adhere to restrictions
• Hand watering is allowed at any time

Irrigation schedules will be based on the last digit of the address.

• 1 – Tuesday
• 2 – Wednesday
• 3/4 – Thursday
• 5/6 – Friday
• 7/8 – Saturday
• 9/0 – Sunday

Under the Stage 2 restrictions, non-essential water use is not allowed, and includes:

• No washing vehicles at a residence
• No spray downs of hard-surfaced areas
• No spray down of buildings
• No flushing gutters
• No draining and refilling pools and hot tubs
• No use of water in fountains or ponds for aesthetic purposes, except to support aquatic life

Lake Meredith, located just northeast of Amarillo, is no longer supplying water to the South Plains. According to the Canadian River Municipal Water Authority, Lake Meredith is currently at 30.54 feet, slightly up from its record low of 30.18 feet on January 12^th of this year.

Until the Lake Alan Henry project is complete, Lubbock is dependent on water taken from wells in Bailey and Roberts Counties. 2012 is the first year that no water is expected to be available for use from Lake Meredith.