Seattle running out of water quicker than we thought
Jul 28, 2015, 11:09 AM | Updated: 1:20 pm
Seattle's water level dropped to "fair" recently, after usage increased due to the hot temperatures. (AP)
(AP)
There’s no need to panic. That was the message Seattle residents received as temperatures warmed up and concerns over a drought rose in May.
Though there still doesn’t seem to be a reason to lose sleep at night, Seattle’s water supply has prompted city officials to take steps to avoid a California-type situation.
Related: Historically low water levels force Seattle to ask for help
It’s a situation that feels a little different from the beginning of summer, when residents were told Seattle has more water in its reservoirs than an average year. The city’s water supply outlook recently dropped to “fair,” after a stretch of unusually warm temperatures, according to Seattle Public Utilities.
The change in water levels led Seattle, as well as Everett and Tacoma, to ask its residents to be conscious of its water usage. Seattle’s Parks and Recreation Department has also continued to prioritize irrigation for park landscapes that have high public use, according to spokesperson David Takami.
“Some previously irrigated turf areas may be allowed to go dormant,” according to Takami.
High-priority areas that could continue to be watered include high-activity turf and athletic fields, specialty gardens, greenhouse and food gardens and new or establishing landscapes. Areas with lower irrigation priority include informal lawns and well-established shrubs.
“Our goal is to use only the water that is needed to provide healthy sustainable landscapes for park users to enjoy,” Takami wrote.
Along with the parks department’s low-flow bathroom amenities, it also is limiting when certain park features are used. Wading pools, for example, will only be filled to a minimum level on days where the temperature has reached 70 degrees by 11 a.m. More water will be added to the pools, depending on the amount of people — four wading pools have recently been converted into recirculating spray parks.
The parks department has a variety of landscapes in its 465 parks. It has more than 300 irrigation systems, which includes manual hose watering and weather-based systems.
Luckily for Seattle, the city and businesses have worked toward better water consumption. Safeco Field, for instance, has reduced its water consumption by more than 25 percent over the last few years, according to Mariners Director of Public Information Rebecca Hale.
“We’ve been focused on this (along with energy consumption and waste reduction) for almost 10 years now, predating the current water supply concerns,” Hale wrote.
Meanwhile, Seattle Public Utilities is just trying to keep water in the pipes under Bertha’s pressure.
