Update from the North Texas Municipal Water District

Stage 3 water restrictions allowing landscape watering once every two weeks to continue in April with month-to-month extensions based on any changes to drought conditions.

Current schedule for Heath customers to continue in April.

The North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) Board of Directors have approved continuation of Stage 3 landscape watering of once every two weeks for the month of April 2014. The limitation of landscape watering to once every two weeks will continue with subsequent monthly extensions considered by the Board.

As part of the Stage 3, landscape watering is limited to once every two weeks with sprinklers or irrigation systems at each service address between November 1 and March 31. However, beginning the month of April 2014, limitation of landscape watering to once every two weeks will continue with subsequent monthly extensions considered by the Board.

NTMWD remains in Stage 3 of its NTMWD Water Conservation and Drought Contingency and Water Emergency Response Plan. Continuation of Stage 3 is necessary due to below average rainfall, declining water levels of NTMWD reservoirs, and the temporary loss of the Lake Texoma raw water supply due to the zebra mussel infestation.

As drought continues to persist, the few rain events that have occurred have not significantly impacted lake levels. The NTMWD Board of Directors will continue to review the Stage 3 restrictions each month. “The strategies in place assist NTMWD in managing the current available water supplies and plan for future needs,” Parks added.

Lavon Lake, the NTMWD’s primary water supply, is currently 12.32 feet below conservation pool level; Jim Chapman Lake is 12.58 feet low; Lake Tawakoni is 9.75 feet low; and Lake Texoma is 8.56 feet low.

The new pipeline from Lake Texoma comes online in May for Water Treatment Plants III and IV, and in June for Water Treatment Plants I and II. The $306 million pipeline will connect Lake Texoma to the Wylie, Texas water treatment plant and will allow the NTMWD to resume using the Texoma water supply while minimizing the spread of the invasive zebra mussel. The restoring of the Texoma supply will not alter the current Stage 3 water management strategies as drought continues to have impacts to the NTMWD’s water supplies in Lavon and Chapman.

NTMWD encourages consumers to continue strategies to extent current available supplies until relief from drought occurs.

JAMES M. PARKS
NTMWD EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR