Drought: Area Water-Use Restrictions Likely

By Erica Cordova, The Santa Fe New Mexican

Mar. 29–The Eldorado Area Water and Sanitation District has a proposal to restrict water use with penalties, including disconnection, for anyone who doesn’t abide by the restrictions. The board will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday to vote on a plan that would restrict customers from watering yards, planting grass or washing driveways, depending on drought conditions. Public comments are encouraged. Mary Raynard, district board president, said the restrictions are necessary. “We know that there is a serious drought, and we expect the drought to last and we want to be prepared,” Raynard said. “We want to make sure that everyone in Eldorado is aware of what we are doing.”

According to the draft proposal, ratepayers in Eldorado will have to conserve water on two different levels depending on drought and supply. In Stage 1, odd-number addresses will be allowed to water only on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Even-number addresses will water on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. No watering would be allowed on Mondays. Washing hard surfaces such as patios and driveways would be prohibited, and hours of watering would be restricted to evenings and mornings — from 6 p.m. to 10 a.m. only. No new turf or sod may be planted, according to the proposed restrictions. In Stage 2, customers would be allowed to water yards on only two days: odd addresses on Tuesdays and Saturdays, even addresses Wednesdays and Sundays. Until now, the Eldorado board didn’t have a water-restriction plan in place, Raynard said. Santa Fe County already has its own restrictions. On the county-commission agenda this week, the Water Resources Department is requesting that water restrictions be elevated to Stage 3. The county’s thirdstage rules restrict watering to once a week. Leonard Quintana, operations manager for the county, said the restrictions are being heightened because of dry conditions. The county has been in Stage 2 for a year and hasn’t had to cite any violators, he said. County fines start at $20 and climb to $200 depending on the degree of violation. “We want to conserve the water we do have,” Quintana said. “People are being cautious about turning off their irrigation systems. In the past, I don’t think there was too much of that.” The draft rules for Eldorado do not include a third stage. Because Eldorado has its own water district, it doesn’t have to abide by county rules. Eldorado also can’t fine violators, but it can disconnect their service. The Eldorado water district doesn’t have authority from the Public Regulation Commission to fine violators, Raynard said. Those who violate Eldorado restrictions in the first stage receive two verbal and three written notices before water is disconnected. In Stage 2, violators get one verbal and two written warnings. “This seems to be our only option,” Raynard said. “We don’t want to turn people’s water off.” If the board votes to implement the restrictions, alerts will be posted on the district’s Web site, www.eldoradowaterdistrict. com, and on the Eldorado Community Improvement Association’s Web site. They’ll also be published in Wednesday’s Eldorado edition of The New Mexican, among other media outlets, according to the policy. The district also is looking for volunteers to watch for and report water-restriction violators. Erica Cordova can be reached at 490-2507 or at ecordova@sfnewmexican.com.

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