Below please see a press release issued by the Town's Director of Engineering and Utilities regarding mandatory water restrictions. Your cooperation in assisting the Town during this period is sincerely appreciated.

Water demands reach a critical level while the reservoir supply continues to decrease

Purcellville: The Town is entering the EMERGENCY level of the Town’s Water Curtailment Plan. One of the triggers for entering the EMERGENCY level is that the production level must be between 95% and 100% of the total capacity available. For the week of 8/21/06 through 8/27/06, the water production to meet demand was 99.8% of the total production capacity of the system. Any additional water use would result in the Town not being able to provide the quantity of water demanded resulting in overtaxing of the Town’s water system. In addition, the Hirst Reservoir continues to drop, with the back lake being down more than three feet at this time.

This past winter the Town Council revised the Water Curtailment Plan to include triggers based on total water production needed to meet demand. The additional trigger is intended to identify to Town water users that they are close to using more water than the Town has available.

The EMERGENCY level of the ordinance requires that Public/Business users take specific measures to conserve water on a mandatory basis. Mandatory restrictions are enforceable through the Town Ordinance and could result in fines for those who do not follow.

1. No lawn watering, including school ball fields. Limit watering to vegetable gardens and use gray water to water shrubs and plants.

2. No car washing or outside washing. Commercial carwashes will be permitted to operate if they can demonstrate that they recycle at least 50% of the water used during the car washing process.

3. High water users, those that consistently use more than 1,000 gal/day, shall have prepared curtailment plans demonstrating how they shall respond to emergency situations and shall implement it (as provided in the Town Water Conservation and Curtailment Plan)

5. Developers and/or residents will not be permitted to install seed or sod during the “EMERGENCY” level unless they have committed to providing regular lawn watering without Town water even after the establishment of the lawn for the duration of the Town being at a level of the Curtailment Plan other than Normal. A drought bond will be offered as an alternative and will be in an amount designated by the Fee Schedule.

9. Restaurants/cafeteria/other food establishments shall provide water only by the patron’s request.

11. No fire department training and no flushing of lines for development purposes unless determined necessary by Town Council or their representatives.

The most effective reduction in water use by residents will be the curtailment of lawn watering and car washing. Both these activities are considered to be non-essential uses of water and typically are the major culprits for increased water uses during dry periods. The Town is requiring users to refrain from all non-essential water uses during this period in order to extend the remaining supply for the essential water uses we all count on every day. It is important that we protect the water supply that is remaining in the Town system in case the drought continues into the fall. Although the wells are not currently showing any signs of drawdown, if the dry weather continues this could become a concern.

On Saturday night the reservoir received 0.7” of rain. Unfortunately, with the very dry conditions of the watershed, the reservoir levels did not increase substantially because of this rain. It will take several major rain events to even begin to increase the water level in the Hirst Reservoir. It is therefore imperative to continue conserving even beyond the first couple of rain events.

Town residents and businesses should pay close attention to their water uses both inside and outside of the house and business and reduce water use in all possible areas. For example, they should consider using “grey” water from their shower to water shrubs and gardens. “Grey” water can be obtained by placing a bucket under the tub faucet and collecting the cold water that is lost while waiting for the water to warm up. They can then use this water to water plants and shrubs or even to flush their toilet. Other measures to conserve water include: completing only full loads of dishes and laundry, cooling water in the refrigerator rather than by running the tap until cold, turning off the faucet while you brush your teeth, using a broom to clean your sidewalk and driveway instead of a hose and many other ideas. Residents and businesses are encouraged to visit the Town website at http://www.purcellvilleva.com/where there is a conservation page which will provide links to websites that have additional water conservation tips.

Although this water shortage is due to the drought situation, the Town is growing and with this growth is a continuing need for additional water capacity. The Town is currently pursuing several additional water resources including applying for permitting for a new reservoir system and considering possible well resources outside of Town.