LCSA Asks Customers to Let Lawns Go in Light of Dry Conditions

Leesburg – Due to localized drought conditions and an unprecedented demand for water, Loudoun County Sanitation Authority (LCSA) officials are asking the County Administrator to make a formal declaration of Water Use Restrictions in accordance with Chapter 1044.05 of the County Code, which specifies that water usage should be “reduced as much as possible” and that “all water users [are] requested to inspect all plumbing and repair all leaks.”

LCSA is specifically asking that customers cut back on lawn watering by following the odd/even rule, which is to water lawns on even days if your address is even-numbered and odd days if your address is odd.

“When our customers follow the odd/even rule for lawn watering, we typically see a 25 percent reduction in demand, which is all we need to get us through the current rough patch” says General Manager Dale Hammes. LCSA is also asking that if customers want to wash their cars, they go to a car wash facility that recycles water instead of washing their car at home.

Two factors are driving the need for water use restrictions: a stressed supply and an extra high demand. Flow in Goose Creek, which accounts for one third of the total water LCSA supplies to its customers, was at 6 million gallons Monday morning, only 6 percent of its mean flow for August 6, and trending downward.

“It is very typical for Goose Creek to flow so low like this in July and August when there isn’t any rainfall for awhile. All we need is one good storm, maybe one that drops an inch or two of rain each week and we’d be okay,” says LCSA Deputy Director of Engineering Tim Coughlin.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), rainfall in the Goose Creek watershed for the first half of this year is trending at the lowest in 40 years, with 12.37 inches recorded for January through June. The lowest rainfall recorded for this timeframe was 15.25 inches in 1965. Beaverdam Reservoir, which is used to augment flow in Goose Creek, is down 38 percent of its total capacity.

At the same time, water use is 20 percent higher than this time last year, with less than a three percent increase in customers in that time. “We’re attributing the increased demand for water to pre-set sprinkler systems. At about four am each morning, water storage in our tanks drops significantly, right when sprinklers are kicking on. You could set your watch to it,” says LCSA Director of Operations Roddy Mowe. He reports that new records are set almost weekly for maximum daily demand, the most recent record being just over 40 million gallons. With 55,000 metered connections, that averages to approximately 730 gallons of water being used per home per day.

LCSA officials will continue to review water supply data, daily demand statistics, and local weather forecasts weekly, and update customers when any change in the overall situation occurs.


Contact
Samantha Villegas, Mgr. of Communications
571-291-7942
samantha.villegas@lcsa.org


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