The City of Amarillo is asking residents and businesses to voluntarily cut back on outdoor watering after the city's reservoir dropped to 60% of its storage capacity.
The request is part of Stage 1 of Amarillo's 2024 drought contingency plan, approved by the Amarillo City Council. Stage 1 calls for residents and businesses to follow a voluntary outdoor watering schedule based on whether their address ends in an odd or even number.
Under the plan, odd-numbered addresses are asked to water on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Even-numbered addresses should water on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Residents are asked not to water on Saturdays.
The city is also asking residents to limit lawn watering to no more than three times per week and to irrigate between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., when cooler temperatures can help reduce water loss.
Reservoir level triggers Stage 1
Under the city's drought plan, Stage 1 can be implemented when demand or normal operating conditions cause the reservoir to fall to approximately 60% of capacity or below. It can also be triggered when total daily water demand reaches or exceeds approximately 70% of available water production capacity for five consecutive days.
Amarillo's reservoir is currently at the 60% threshold.
The circumstances are different from the last time Amarillo entered Stage 1. The city implemented the first stage of its drought plan on July 22, 2022, because of high water demand. That event lasted one week.
“The community really did their part to reduce the demand in 2022. The difference between the 2022 event and the current event is that the 2022 event was based on high demand. This event is based on the level of the reservoir,” said Shannon Tollison, director of Utilities – Regulatory Compliance.
Tollison said the city can fill the reservoir only with water purchased from the Canadian River Municipal Water Authority, or CRMWA. No other water sources feed the reservoir.
“In addition to demand of the water production plant pulling from it, the reservoir is also subject to the heat and wind that increase the rate of evaporation,” Tollison said. “The citizens and businesses in our community absolutely make a difference when they reduce the frequency of irrigation and they proved that in 2022.”
