WACO, Texas — The City of Waco is introducing a proposal that would limit how and when you and your neighbors can water your lawn — it’s all a part of the city’s conservation and drought contingency plan.
- The city’s proposal that would limit Waco homeowners' sprinkler usage year-round to two days a week.
- Outdoor water use will be prohibited between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., and runoff more than10 feet from your property edge will be considered water waste.
- The plan is similar to the city’s current stage two drought plan. The presentation explains how the 2022-2023 drought brought to light the need for year round conservation.
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“I have an alarm set on my phone for the water restriction scheduled to water twice a week,” Kirby Rivera said.
Kirby Rivera spends a few hours each week working in her garden, trying to keep her front yard looking green.
“We have kids and a toddler and a dog, it’s nice to be able to come outside and play in the grass,” Rivera said.
I informed her about the city’s proposal that would limit her and her neighbors’ sprinkler usage year-round to two days a week.
“We do have a sprinkler system. In fact, it’s a smart sprinkler system. So it looks at the forecast and it actually turns itself to save and conserve water,” Ragan Patterson said.
Outdoor water use will be prohibited between 10am and 7pm, and runoff more than10 feet from your property edge will be considered water waste.
“The big sprinkler systems, those are a huge user of water, so it taxes our system if everybody is using it at the same time,” Jessica Emmett Sellers said.
Every five years the city must come up with a new conservation and drought contingency plan — Jessica Emmett Sellers from the city of Waco tells me this plan is similar to the city’s current stage two drought plan.
The presentation explains how the 2022-2023 drought brought to light the need for year round conservation.
“Population growth, you know taxes the system, that kind of thing, like how’d we adjust for that so we don’t get into a crisis mode,” Emmett Sellers said.
Homeowners like Ragan Patterson believe if we’ve seen high amounts of rain, restrictions shouldn’t be so tight.
“I’d be more of a fan for it being tied to specific water levels or water consumption projections then to have a blanket statement that everyone has to comply with,” Patterson said.
Kirby Rivera felt the same way.
“So if we’re not in drought conditions, it’d be nice to just be able to water and we’ll pay as much as we want,”
Watering by hand will still be allowed daily. This plan is just a proposal. You can view the city’s presentation here.
