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Water Shortage Response Plans Ask For Conservation, Don't Mandate It

Seattle, Tacoma and Everett have activated their water shortage response plans. The hot, dry weather has increased demand for water just as river levels are at historic lows. Seattle Public Utilities, Tacoma Public Utilities and the city of Everett issued a joint  release announcing the implementation of the first stage of the response plans. In the first stage, no one will be forced to stop watering their lawn.  Alex Chen, Seattle Public Utilities Division Director for Water Planning at Seattle Public Utilities says the idea, at this stage, is to get utility customers to “be extra thoughtful about their water use and to manage it carefully.”

If water supplies go too low, Seattle, Tacoma and Everett, which supplies water for most of Snohomish County, would move to stage two, which would mean asking customers to voluntarily cut back.

Under stage 3, mandatory restrictions would kick in.

For now, Seattle, Everett and Tacoma are encouraging customers to go to their respective websites for tips on how best to conserve water. Here are the links:

http://www.savingwater.org/

https://www.mytpu.org/your/ways-to-save/save-on-your/

https://everettwa.gov/931/Water-Conservation-Program

Outdoor use is where the utilities see the biggest waste.

In Tacoma in June, for example, water use was 35% higher this summer than last. 

Paula is a former host, reporter and producer who retired from KNKX in 2021. She joined the station in 1989 as All Things Considered host and covered the Law and Justice beat for 15 years. Paula grew up in Idaho and, prior to KNKX, worked in public radio and television in Boise, San Francisco and upstate New York.