YORK, Pa. — The York Water Company on Friday announced it is implementing a mandatory restriction on non-essential water use.
In a statement Friday, YWC said it had hoped that voluntary conservation measures and the predicted rainfall over the last 10 days would have restored some of the water supply, but with only 0.9 inches of rainfall since the beginning of the month, the water deficit for the year to date remains at more than 12 inches and the company's watershed is in a state of drought.
“The weather patterns have been frustrating to watch, consistently skirting the watershed, or evaporating before reaching it," said J.T. Hand, president and CEO of the York Water Company. "Despite the public’s response to our voluntary restriction requests, this has not resulted in sufficient reduced water demand on our system.
"In spite of our efforts to pump over 11 million gallons per day from the Susquehanna River to our Lake Redman Reservoir, our water supply is in decline. It is now absolutely critical for our customers to conserve, to protect the water resource, and ensure it is available for the most vulnerable and highest priority water needs of the community.”
York resident Bernie Linn said he was concerned when he heard about the water restriction memo and is trying to cut back on his home water supply, by taking his car to the car wash, so the water can be recycled.
“Not everybody is obsessed with cleaning their car as much as I am, but it’s nice to do it without knowing that you’re sucking up all the water," said Linn.
While not all-inclusive, effective immediately the following water uses are deemed nonessential and are prohibited within The York Water Company’s service territories in York, Adams, and Franklin Counties, the company said:
- The use of any water for watering grass, athletic fields, and irrigation of outdoor gardens, landscaped areas, trees, shrubs, and other outdoor plants.
- The use of any water for watering any portion of golf courses.
- The use of any water for washing or cleaning of mobile equipment, like vehicles.
- The serving of water in restaurants, clubs or eating places, unless specifically requested by an individual.
- The use of any water to fill and top off swimming pools.
- The use of water from a fire hydrant—including sprinkler caps—for any purpose, except for firefighting or testing apparatus with prior notice to York Water.
- The use of any water that is not necessary to serve essential health, safety, or economic needs, including the maintenance of human, animal, and plant life.
A complete list can be found here.
Vicki Long is the manager at Round the Clock Diner East and believes the water restriction will help restaurants cut down on waste.
“If you got a party of 20 and the waitress automatically brings out water, and five people take a couple of sips," said Long. "Once they leave, you can’t dump it back in, it goes into the bust pan.”
Some residents hope their neighbors will do what they can to cut back…in order to preserve York’s water supply.
“Water is a measurable asset, and we would die without it," said Linda Amos, a York resident.
“I think most people, once they think about it, will try and do their part," said Linn.
In order to answer questions from customers, York Water has established a drought email address of drought.questions@yorkwater.com, where York Water customers can submit nonessential water use restriction questions.
"This is not a situation any of us want to be in, but nature is not cooperating, and we must ensure that our customers have water when they need," the company said.
The York Water Company supplies nearly 20 million gallons of water every day and has more than 75,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers.
Over 210,000 people use YWC water in 54 communities in York, Adams, and Franklin counties.