Water Curtailment Plan

Click here to view the Water Curtailment Stages.

Curtailment requests for reduction of water are be supported by a public information program aimed at educating the community about water use so they may understand how modifying their habits can affect water consumption. When issuing a notice to the public, Banks provides examples of ways to conserve water. For example, the public notification for a First Stage condition is aimed at outdoor uses. These uses can form a significant proportion of summer residential use and tend to be more discretionary in nature.

Specific conservation measures that are recommended in the notice include the following:

  • no landscape irrigation during daylight hours to reduce evaporation,
  • limit length of time irrigation system is on to reduce waste from runoff and overwatering,
  • landscape irrigation no more than three days per week and,
  • no home washing of cars or hosing down of patios, walkways, and other surfaces.

Public notification procedures to communicate water curtailment measures should be defined in advance. Press releases through radio, newspaper, and television should be utilized to reach the entire community. Door hangers should also be purchased in advance so that in an emergency all customers can be notified directly and quickly. These measures are further supported by the public information program that provides guidance and suggestions on water conservation (see Section3.8).

Banks has developed many city ordinances that encourage or prescribe water conservation by the public, all of which can be found on the City’s webpage. Current conservation ordinances, which are contained under Title V, Chapter 50 of the Banks Code of Ordinances include:

 

  • The adoption of a policy favoring the use of xeric, low water demand landscaping in all private and public projects( §50.01H)
  • Metering of all connections to the City water system as installed and maintained by authorized Water Department personnel (§50.08B)
  • Requiring all water uses with an unusually high demand (filling of pools, ponds, etc.) must be arranged with and approved by the City (§50.14)
  • The prohibition of any free water service (§50.21)
  • The definition of a three-stage water curtailment plan as described in detail in section 4.3 (§50.23)
  • The definition of an irrigation season, irrigation regulations, and irrigation prohibitions (§50.24)

Enforcement of these various conservation ordinances is also defined. The first known offense of a water use provision will result in the issuance of a warning to the responsible water user and/or property owner. If the water user fails to address and correct the violation, then the City issues a citation and may fine the water user up to $500 (§50.24B).