Parts of Travis and Hays counties will be required to reduce their water usage by 20 percent starting Feb. 6 under an alarm- stage drought declared by the Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer Conservation District.
Only those who use groundwater resources in the district will be required to abide by the mandate, leaving most of Austin unaffected, said Kirk Holland, general manager of the district. Austin uses Lake Travis as its main water source.
The district declared the alarm-stage drought because of lower-than-average water flow rates from Barton Springs, Holland said. Buda, parts of Kyle and some subdivisions in South Austin are in the affected region.
The mandate applies to the 90 percent of residents in the district who have permits to use water from the aquifer, Holland said. The users who don't have permits - the other 10 percent - will be urged to reduce consumption.
"Residents have a personal responsibility," Holland said. "This means not leaving the hose running while washing your car and being mindful of water waste."
Muriel Greenholtz, owner of the Main Street Cafe in Buda, said she just found out about the mandate Wednesday morning. "It was a surprise to me today and to other people around here," she said.
Her daughter, Crystal Cuzze, said that she couldn't think of a way to conserve water at the Main Street Cafe because the restaurant only uses what it needs.
Cuzze said she expects water rates to rise as the population grows in Buda, creating a greater demand for water. "We will simply have to absorb the cost," she said.
She stressed the importance of water conservation and added that she will try to conserve water at home.
"We live here," Cuzze said. "We want to maintain our quality of life. We don't want to hurt the environment."
Only communities that do not use Austin utilities will be required to reduce their water usage. These communities include areas in and around the Shady Hollow subdivision, Onion Creek and individual well owners.
If substantial rain does not fall by summer, the district could declare a more critical drought stage, Holland said. In a more severe drought stage, the endangered Barton Springs salamander could be threatened, and the water quality of the springs could decline, he said.
So far, although water levels have declined, Barton Springs has not been significantly affected by the drought, Holland said.
"The city has plenty of water," said Tony Gregg, Austin water conservation manager. "There are no storage issues right now."
Those living in the unaffected areas of Austin should take heed of the drought.
"We should try to preserve as much water for as long as possible," Holland said. "Every drop we don't save now can't be recovered later."
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