According to the Tampa Bay Times, Tampa Bay issued a water shortage order limiting outdoor watering to one day per week. The vote by the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s governing board came after the driest rainy season in Tampa Bay in more than two decades, the newspaper reports.
The districtwide order went into effect Nov. 21 and the extra restrictions for Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough take effect Dec. 1. It does not apply to the usage of reclaimed water.
The Times said the order covers the entirety of the Water Management District — including 11 whole counties and parts of five others — but includes extra restrictions for Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties. In those three counties, residents will have one day a week to irrigate their lawns. Residents in the rest of the district will have the usual twice-per-week watering schedules, except where local governments imposed stricter measures. It does prohibit “wasteful and unnecessary” watering, such as hosing down a driveway.
The Times said the move is backed by Tampa Bay Water, the public supplier that provides water to most of Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough. Chuck Carden, the supplier’s general manager, told the Times the unusually dry weather and high demand for water put pressure on the region’s water resources and outdoor irrigation accounts for about half of the region’s potable water demand.
“While we have sufficient drinking water supplies to serve the region, we are now asking to take proactive measures to increase the awareness about conserving water and lowering demand,” he told the newspaper. “The easiest way to do this is to minimize irrigation.”