BUDA, Texas (STPNS) -- Cutting water consumption by all area residents  has been the focus of the aquifer board and city councils.

Critical Stage Drought was declared Sept. 14 by the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District Board of Directors, and Tuesday night the Kyle City Council unanimously adopted Stage 2 water management and drought restrictions at its meeting.

?This is the first time we have ever declared Critical Stage Drought in our history,? said Bob Larson, board president.



Kyle City Manager Tom Mattis called on all citizens to cooperate to help further reduce water consumption.

Aquifer Science Team Leader Brian Smith said the board declared critical drought because the flow of Barton Springs dropped below the critical 10-day-average of 20 cubic feet per second to 19.9 cubic feet per second, and Lovelady Monitor Well was 192.8 feet below the surface, with 192 feet being the critical level.

?Both indicators were below their drought trigger levels. If there had been mitigating circumstances like a hurricane about to land or if it had been later into November, when people use less water, the board might have had a reason not to declare critical, but there weren?t,? Smith said. ?Scientific data is showing we are going deeper and deeper into drought.?

Only one of the triggers are necessary for the board to consider declaring critical drought, but both the springs and the well have to be above critical levels before the board can exit the drought declaration, Smith said.

In a Critical Stage Drought, permitees have to reduce their water usage by 30 percent, (10 percent more than the previous Alarm Stage 20 percent reduction) and there is no outdoor watering use, with few exceptions.

?The board agreed to allow a little outdoor watering,? Smith said. ?You can water small lawn areas, shrubbery, trees and foundations around your house, but only with handheld hoses with an automatic shutoff. This amendment may have to be repealed if there is no significant rainfall.?

Todd Swearingen, who lives in Mountain City and maintains a pool business, said the district should have included the topping off of swimming pools in their amendment.

He said the health hazards alone should be enough incentive to allow people to not fill a whole pool, but at least refill water that has evaporated or splashed out, since pool filters will not work if the water level is too low.

?If you turn a pool off it becomes a cesspool where bacteria live and mosquitoes live,? Swearingen said. ?And if you had to shut off the approximately 15,000 pools in Hays County, then drain and refill them in a 30-90 day period what kind of strain does that put on the aquifer??

John Dupnik, BS/EACD regulatory specialist, said it is up to the permitees, like water companies, to decide if they can allow the usage, such as topping off pools suggested by Swearingen.

BS/EACD General Manager Kirk Holland said declaring critical drought was necessary to conserve the groundwater in the aquifer for the future.

?We know it is going to be a source of concern for all users already trying to conserve as much as they can, but we have to reduce the water use to an absolute minimum at this time because water levels are critically low and we don?t know how long this drought will last,? Holland said.

At the meeting, Colin Clark, communications director of Save Our Springs alliance, came to support the critical drought declaration.

?We are pleased the district has declared Critical Stage Drought using the standards set forth in their by-laws. Less pumpage out of the aquifer should mean more flow in Barton Springs,? Clark said. ?Conservation of water is not only good for Barton Springs, it is good for other people who depend on the groundwater.?

Fortunately, Buda has access to surface water, and Chuck Murphy, Director of Precinct one where Buda is located, said the board approved the supplementing of surface water for the city.

?This is good news for both the aquifer and the residents of Buda. Any reduction of ground water use is welcomed, especially when we?re in any type of drought,? Murphy said. ?Second, the good folks in Buda will not be faced with cessation of watering their landscapes. Buda will remain in alarm stage drought criteria (5 day water schedule) in terms of measures needed to maintain water reduction.?