Pennsylvania remains in a statewide drought watch, and the state Department of Environmental Protection is asking residents and businesses to voluntarily conserve water.
“Although this week has brought some welcome rain to much of the state, it’s not enough to make up for the lack of rainfall this spring, following a winter that brought little snowfall in many areas,” said DEP Acting Secretary Rich Negrin. “As a result, we’re seeing lowered stream flows, dropping groundwater levels, and persistent precipitation deficits. Water conservation, always a good practice, is especially helpful now as it’ll lessen potential future impacts on water supplies if rainfall continues to be scant this summer.”
The commonwealth’s Drought Task Force issued the declaration. A drought watch precedes a drought warning and a drought emergency. A watch calls for voluntary restrictions, while a drought emergency results in mandatory restrictions.
Residents are asked to reduce their individual water use by 5% to 10%, or by a reduction of three to six gallons of water each day.
Currently, 18 public water suppliers are asking for voluntary water conservation in their communities.
Pennsylvania American Water sent notices to many of its customers asking them to voluntarily lessen water use.
“Our sources of supply are currently adequate to meet customer needs, but by conserving now, we can help prevent more severe conditions that could lead to stricter conservation measures later this summer,” the notice indicated.
And in Fayette County, North Fayette County Municipal Authority also issued a notice that its customers are “required to follow the restrictions put in place by the order and reduce their water usage by 5%.”
“Continuance of the drought conditions will force the NFCMA to impose mandatory restrictions and water rationing,” said authority General Manager Ken Martray.
To save water, customers can take a number of steps, including: forego watering lawns or washing cars, flush toilets less often, wash only full loads of laundry or run the dishwasher only when it is full, turn off the tap while brushing teeth or washing dishes in the sink, or set up a rain barrel to be ready to repurpose rain when it does fall.
According to the National Weather Service Pittsburgh, this year has been dry, with the area seeing about 4 1/2 inches less of precipitation than anticipated so far this year. Unofficially, Washington, Greene and Fayette counties are about 3 1/2 inches lower than average.
The Department of Agriculture also encourages farm operations to plan to help protect their viability.
Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said Pennsylvania farmers have been impacted by “weather extremes and unpredictability in recent years,” and this year is no exception. More than 90% of the topsoil across the state was either short or very short in moisture content in the past week.
According to the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the dry weather has dramatically increased the number of wildfires in Pennsylvania this year. There have already been 1,400 wildfires reported statewide so far in 2023, compared to 1,036 in all of 2022. This year’s wildfires have burned more than 8,500 acres, compared to 2,700 acres in 2022.
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Categories: Pennsylvania, Rural Lifestyle