April 5, 2006

Published in Wake Forest, NC

            Wake County is one of 21 in a severe drought at the same time the water source for 350,000 of its residents, Falls Lake, is at 80 percent capacity and not expected to fill this spring or summer.

            Wake County also faces another issue that may be even bigger, according to Mark Bailey, the county’s water quality director. That is capacity use in groundwater. Large subdivisions outside municipalities all across the county have community wells where the water is used in both homes and for irrigating lawns. Bailey said one of those wells can pump as much as 350,000 gallons every day, and there may be several in the community water system.

            Those large well systems can draw down the aquifer so much that the more shallow wells on individual lots in the area may lose their capacity or go dry.

            Raleigh, which owns the water systems in Garner, Rolesville and Wake Forest and sells water to Knightdale, Wendell and Zebulon, has about 240 days of water left in Falls Lake. That should last through November if the lake does not shrink further from lake or rain or rechange and if people do not increase their use.

            The city and the towns it provides with water are under mandatory stage 2 water conservation measures with fines up to $1,000 and shutoff of water service as the final punishment, but it does not seem to affect many people.

            Wake Forest Town Manager Mark Williams said this week he did not know of any enforcement or fines in town. Raleigh is responsible for enforcement, he said.

            Calls to the Raleigh Public Utility Department about a list of those fined for violating the conservation measure were not returned.

            Although some people have complained about not being able to wash their cars in their yards or hose down patios or porches, restaurants appear to still serve water without a request.

            Although there has been some rain, the area began the year with a rainfall deficit of about 6 inches and this year there is an additional 6-inch rainfall deficit locally. The flow in streams is now about 25 to 30 percent the normal amount, and experts say the groundwater level is at a record low.

            For Falls Lake, the amount of water coming into the lake from the Little, Eno and Flat rivers was 9 percent of the normal flow during the first 20 days in March. The lake is about a foot below its normal level now; last summer it dropped so low large portions of the upper part of the lake where it is more shallow were dry.

            On Tuesday, the Raleigh City Council heard the recommendations from a water conservation task force which included year-round conservation and progressive water rates with higher costs for those who use more water.

            The city will hold a public meeting about the recommendations on May 2.

            Wake Forest residents will not be affected by any change in water rates because, under the merger agreement, the town’s water rates will be in effect until the $19 million cost of merger is paid off.

            However, town residents and people in Jones Dairy Farm subdivision who are on the town system would be affected by any restrictions on water use.