Gatesville implements Stage 2 in Drought Contingency Plan; Water restrictions

The city of Gatesville implemented a Stage 2 Drought Contingency plan as well as water restrictions on Friday, Aug. 4, their goal is to achieve a 10% reduction in use of water that would have occurred in the absence of drought contingency measures Gatesville City Manager Scott Albert told the Gatesville Messenger in an interview.  

“The state requires the city to have a Drought Contingency Plan (DCP) which is a strategy on monitoring and responding to a drought or other water supply shortages that can disrupt the supply of water to customers,” Albert told the Messenger. 

Additional measures are to be implemented directly by the city of Gatesville to manage limited water supplies and to reduce water demand including the discontinued flushing of water mains and significantly reduced or discontinued irrigation of public landscaped areas. 

All water supply corporations including Coryell City Water Supply, Fort Gates Water Supply Corporation, Flat Water Supply Corporation, and Grove Water Supply Corporation should have received the same Brazos River Authority (BRA) notice as Gatesville.  

The city of Gatesville will follow up with its regional wholesale customers to make sure they are notifying their customers regarding water restrictions and conservation methods. 

The following water use restrictions for demand reduction apply to all persons: 

• Irrigation of landscaped areas with hose-end sprinklers or automatic irrigation systems shall be limited to Sundays and Thursdays for customers with a street address ending in an even number including zero, two, four, six, or eight. Saturdays and Wednesdays are for water customers with a street address ending in an odd number such as one, three, five, seven, or nine. The irrigation of landscaped areas is further limited to the hours of 12 a.m. through 10 a.m. and between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. on designated watering days. However, irrigation of landscaped areas is permitted at any time if it is by means of a hand-held hose, a faucet filled bucket or watering can of five gallons or less, or drip irrigation system. 
• Use of water to wash any motor vehicle, motorbike, boat, trailer, airplane, or other vehicle is prohibited except on designated watering days between the hours of 12 a.m. and 10 a.m. and between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. Such washing, when allowed, shall be done with a hand-held bucket or a hand-held hose equipped with a positive shutoff nozzle. Vehicle washing may be done at any time on the immediate premises of a commercial car wash or commercial service station. Further, such washing may be exempted from these regulations if the health, safety, and welfare of the public is contingent upon frequent vehicle cleansing, such as vehicles used to transport food and perishables. 

• Use of water to fill, refill, or add to any indoor or outdoor swimming pools, wading pools, spas, or hot tubs is prohibited except on designated watering days between the hours of 12 a.m. and 10 a.m. and between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. 
• Operation of any ornamental fountain or pond for aesthetic or scenic purposes is prohibited except where necessary to support aquatic life or where such fountains or ponds are equipped with a recirculation system. 
• Use of water from hydrants shall be limited to firefighting, related activities, or other activities necessary to maintain public health, safety, and welfare, except that use of water from designated fire hydrants for construction purposes may be allowed only under written permission from the City of Gatesville. 
• Use of water for the irrigation of golf course greens, tees, and fairways is prohibited except on designated watering days between the hours 12 a.m. and 10 a.m. and between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. However, if the golf course utilizes a water source other than that provided by the City of Gatesville, the facility shall not be subject to these regulations. 

All restaurants are discouraged from serving water to patrons except upon request of the patron. 

The following uses of water are defined as non-essential and are prohibited: 

- Wash down of any sidewalks, walkways, driveways, parking lots, tennis courts, or other hard-surfaced areas. 

- Use of water to wash down buildings or structures for purposes other than immediate fire protection. 

- Use of water for dust control. 

- Flushing gutters or permitting water to run or accumulate in any gutter or street. 

- Failure to repair a controllable leak within a reasonable period after having been given notice directing the repair of such leak. 

Additionally, to conclude the summer, the city of Gatesville closed the splash pad for the remainder of the season on Friday, Aug. 11 and the Gatesville City Pool was closed this past Saturday, Aug. 5. 

“The city of Gatesville kindly requests that our water customers remember that these extreme conditions are impacting our regional water supplies and urges all to begin implementing conservation measures,” Albert said.