Lower consumption staves off emergency rate increases
Bartlesville remains in Stage 2 of the Water Shortage Ordinance due to ongoing drought conditions and declining lake levels.
Stage 2 of the ordinance, which serves as the City’s drought contingency plan, restricts outdoor water use to twice per week for Bartlesville water customers.
Restrictions in effect
- Even-numbered properties may water on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and odd-numbered properties may water on Wednesdays and Sundays.
Exceptions to this are landscape watering by means of hand-held hose only or watering can, commercial plant nursery, brief watering for testing of a new automatic irrigation system or after repair or adjustment of an existing irrigation system, landscape watering using non-potable water through rain water collection or grey water. (Grey water is relatively clean water from baths, showers, washing machines, sinks and other appliances.)
Ordinance modifications, rate increases
The City Council recently approved recommendations by the Water Resources Committee to begin considering water availability based on water rights (referred to as weighted water supply remaining) in determining which stage of the ordinance the City is in at any given time. Emergency rate increases may be considered in stages 2, 3, and 4 if consumption levels are above the thresholds for each stage.
Currently, the City overall water supply remaining is at 60.8 percent with the weighted water supply remaining at 78.8 percent. Consumption last week was 5.28 million gallons per day (mgd), below the Stage 2 threshold of 5.5 mgd.
“We are doing a good job of staying below the Stage 2 threshold of 5.5 million gallons per day, so emergency rate increases will not be imposed at this time,” said Water Utilities Director Terry Lauritsen.
However, Lauritsen said, it is likely the City will enter Stage 3 of the ordinance later this month or early next month, at which time the consumption threshold will drop.
“Stage 3 occurs when the overall water remaining is between 60 percent and 50 percent and weighted water supply based on water right is below 75 percent,” he said. “If we don’t get any rain and consumption levels remain as they have or go up, we will be in Stage 3 by late October or early November. In Stage 3, our consumption threshold falls to 4.75 mgd, so we will need to stay below that to avoid emergency rate increases.”
Stage 3 restrictions limit outdoor water use to one day per week.
Lake Levels
Hulah Lake – 88 percent
Copan Lake – 39.1 percent
Hudson Lake – 73.3 percent
Caney River – 100 percent
Conservation
Some ways you can help:
- Take shorter showers. This is the No. 1 most effective thing we can do (indoors) to conserve.
- Consider installing “low flow” plumbing, i.e., toilets, shower heads, etc. Also, replace any leaky or defective parts.
- Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth or shaving.
- Never use the toilet as a wastebasket. Only human waste and toilet paper should go into the toilet — ever.
- Run the washing machine only when full and adjust the water level setting carefully.
- Stop or reduce outdoor watering.
More information