AUSTIN, Texas — The City of Austin has enacted Stage 2 water restrictions in response to the ongoing drought affecting Central Texas.
The move to Stage 2 comes as the combined storage level of water in Lakes Travis and Buchanan is projected to drop below 900,000 acre-feet within the next few days.
Interim City Manager Jesús Garza ordered Stage 2 implementation effective on Aug. 15.
Under Stage 2:
- Automatic irrigation and hose-end watering will be restricted to one day per week
- Automatic irrigation runtime is reduced by three hours with cutoff at 5 a.m. instead of 8 a.m.
- Water waste is prohibited
- Restaurants may only serve water if requested
- Charity car washes are prohibited and home car washing must use an auto-shut-off valve or a bucket
- Patio misters at commercial properties, including restaurants and bars, may operate only between 4 p.m. and midnight
- Large ornamental fountains can no longer be operated
- New landscape-establishment irrigation is no longer exempt from the watering schedule
Kevin Critendon, the assistant director for Austin Water, said for the city to go into Stage 1, we would need more rain. Stage 1 drought restrictions were enforced in Austin in June 2022. That's when storage reservoirs reached 1.4 million acre feet.
As of this week, Lake Travis is 40% full and Lake Buchanan is 51% full.
As the city moves into Stage 2, officials say the biggest difference people will notice is that the City is asking residents to only irrigate through their automatic sprinkler systems through a reduced amount of time. Automatic irrigation and hose-end watering will be restricted to one day per week. Also, automatic irrigation runtime is reduced by three hours with cutoff at 5 a.m. instead of 8 a.m.
Jack Neff, an Austin resident of more than 40 years, said he understands the need to cut back on watering lawns and is fine with those restrictions. He said Austinites do need to conserve and the water levels are concerning.
"Lake Travis is half full. Nothing is coming in. You expect hurricane season to do some kind of miracle, but if that does not happen, we could go to Stage 3. That will keep racking up," Neff said. "It could get worse and worse. The population has grown, but the water supply has not."
Failing to follow water restrictions could result in fines of up to $1,000 per violation.
When asked how long residents can expect to be in Stage 2, Critendon said it all comes down to Mother Nature.
"It really all depends on rainfall and climate conditions. Obviously, we want to do our part here. We can't control the rain, we can't control the weather, but we can certainly control how we use water individually and, certainly, Stage 2 drought conditions like we're in, you know, definitely gives us the opportunity to communicate to folks how important it is that they be mindful of their water use," Critendon said.
Historically, Austin has been in Stage 2 before, from 2012 to 2016. Austin Water said it has never had to call for Stage 3.