The Edwards Aquifer Authority enters Stage 4 restrictions

The Edwards Aquifer Authority entered Stage 4 drought restrictions Monday due to low spring flows in San Marcos.

Even so, Alamo City residents concerned about their lawns don't need to panic about new watering restrictions from San Antonio Water System just yet.

The Edwards Aquifer Authority enters Stage 4 restrictions — meaning that pumping from the underground lake must be reduced by 40% — when the J-17 well monitor drops below 630 feet for a rolling average of 10 days. As of press time, the well was at 628 feet.

SAWS also could enter its own Stage 4 water restrictions if the well remains below the 630-foot threshold for a rolling average of 10 days, utility spokeswoman Anne Hayden told the Current . Even so, Hayden said that just because the Edwards Aquifer Authority enters Stage 4 restrictions, that doesn't necessarily mean that SAWS must do the same.

According to Hayden, SAWS will only enter Stage 4 restrictions if the utility is at risk of not meeting the city's water needs.

For now, SAWS remains in Stage 3 and is likely to stay there unless more drastic conservation measures are needed. With a possible hurricane on the way, entering Stage 4 remains somewhat unlikely.

Under revised watering restrictions passed by City Council last month, residents can only water once a week on their designated day between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m., and from 9 p.m. to midnight under stage 3 restrictions.

Those who use more than 20,000 gallons of water per billing cycle will be charged an extra $10.37 per 1,000 gallons used above that threshold under the new rules. This policy, aimed at encouraging water conservation, goes into effect on July 6 and will appear on SAWS customers' August bill.

If SAWS does enter Stage 4 restrictions, residents would only be allowed to water their lawns once per week on designated days and would be fined for using more than 12,000 gallons per billing cycle.

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