Posted: Thu, 16 Jun 2011 01:38 PM - 10,850 Readers
By: Farzad Mashhood
photography by Rodolfo Gonalez
Earlier than expected triple-digit heat has combined with mostly absent rain for one of the worst droughts in Central Texas.
And with summer yet to start, water authorities are sending dire warnings.
Llano is experiencing its worst drought in more than half a century, city officials said.
As of Wednesday, the Llano River, which normally courses through town at 158 cubic feet per second this time of year, was flowing at 3.8 cubic feet per second — the slowest since 1953, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The river is the city's sole source of drinking water.
Officials expect the river's flow to stop as soon as the end of this week, prompting bans on personal car washing, sprinkler use and pool filling.
The city has between 60 and 90 days of untreated water stored behind two dams, said City Manager Finley deGraffenried . But with the water as low as it is, it might be too cloudy or contain too much algae to be treated.
When those stores are gone, the city may need to dig wells or truck in water, deGraffenried said.
"Combined with the fact that we're in early summer and are given no indication that the high pressure system is breaking up, we're obviously taking this very seriously," deGraffenried said.
Llano, about 75 miles northwest of Austin, has more than 3,200 residents, according to the latest census data.
The 1.7 million Central Texans who get their water from the Edwards Aquifer also face water shortages. A lack of meaningful rainfall since October has left springs with flow at half the rates they were at this time last year. Wells levels are 15 and 30 feet lower than this time last year.
For the first time in its history, the Edwards Aquifer Authority expects to declare a Stage 3 shortage, as soon as Monday , requiring permit holders — which include utilities in San Antonio, San Marcos and parts of Comal, Guadalupe, Hays and Caldwell counties — to cut their use by 35 percent.
San Marcos officials said they likely would tighten restrictions on water use on Monday. Currently, residents can only use their sprinklers once a week, car washes are restricted to certain times, pools cannot be filled and ornamental fountains must be shut off. The new restrictions include having to request water at restaurants, using sprinklers only every other week and a ban on noncommercial car washing.
The situation is not as bad as it could have been in past years, San Marcos officials said, as the city began getting the majority of its water from Canyon Lake to take the pressure off the aquifer.
Austin, for the time being, remains in the initial stage of water restrictions, allowing residents to water their lawns twice a week before 10 a.m. and after 7 p.m.
Round Rock is under voluntary watering restrictions. The city's main source of water, Lake Georgetown, is doing well, said water conservation specialist Jessica Woods.
But with the drought, mandatory restrictions are a possibility as early as next month, Woods said.
Central Texas experienced one of the driest October to May periods on record, said Bob Rose, chief meteorologist for the Lower Colorado River Authority. Normally, the region would get 23.1 inches from October to May; this year, only 8.96 inches of rain have fallen at Austin's Camp Mabry, Rose said.
Rain is not typical in July, and it could be as late as August or September before Central Texas sees any, Rose said. The dry spell is due to one of the strongest La Niña patterns the Southwest has seen, he added.
"Springtime is generally the wettest time of the year," Rose said. "This year has been among the driest."
It is unlikely the aquifer would run dry, authority spokesman Roland Ruiz said, as restrictions are set to slow the drop of water levels in wells and maintain flow in springs. But if the aquifer does not get any rain this summer, further restrictions would be likely in July or August, requiring a 40 percent cut in what utilities draw, he said.
"Ultimately, rain is the answer," Ruiz said.
