Mon – Fri: 8:30 – 4:00
Closed from 12–1pm
(609) 883-2900
2 Jake Garzio Drive
Ewing, NJ 08628
Ewing, NJ 08628
Water Conservation Urged as NJ’s Dry Spell Persists
Drought indicators continue to indicate that our region of NJ is still “abnormally dry”1 despite the recent spate of thunderstorms that have rolled into Mercer County over the past week or so.
Governor Phil Murphy’s Office sent out a reminder to encourage residents and businesses to use water wisely during the summer season. Conserving water is always a good practice. However, it is especially important now as the state continues to experience unusually dry weather.
Issued on June 23rd, 2023, the Office states:
“We are asking the public to be especially mindful of water usage and proactively moderate consumption at this time,” said Commissioner of Environmental Protection Shawn M. LaTourette. “Although the state is not declaring a water supply drought watch now, simple steps, such as reducing lawn and landscape watering, go a long way in preserving our water supplies and avoiding the necessity of restrictive measures in the future.”
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is responsible for monitoring and protecting the state’s water supply to ensure ample clean, safe water for drinking and other needs. DEP’s Division of Water Supply and Geoscience has been closely monitoring the drier than usual conditions which have emerged.
Regionally, conditions have been drier to the west and south of New Jersey, and on June 15, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection declared a statewide drought watch requesting that Pennsylvania residents and business voluntarily reduce nonessential water use.
Statewide, New Jersey has had less than half its normal rainfall over the last 30 days. Three of the last four months have had less than normal rainfall. As a consequence, New Jersey’s water supply drought indicators are starting to decline, but water supply drought conditions are not yet present. It is important that residents and businesses take proactive steps to help moderate their use of water to help ensure adequate supplies throughout the summer.
“The summer precipitation outlook, as is most often the case given the hit and miss showery nature of warm season rainfall, is uncertain,” said State Climatologist David Robinson. “Should rainfall remain below normal and hotter weather arrive, drought will likely emerge, and water resources become greatly stressed. However, should rainfall rise to normal levels in the weeks ahead, New Jersey should avoid drought and major water worries.” As we write this post, the forecast for the next 10 days in our area is relatively wet, and we will hope that it comes to fruition. However, we have seen these forecasts fizzle out during the past dry months. So, we need to be vigilant in our water conservation efforts.
Current water demands are being met and New Jersey’s water systems are capable of handling periods of low precipitation. Local conditions can vary, so it is normal for individual water systems or municipalities to periodically request or require that their customers reduce water use before the state does. When implementing local water use restrictions, those water systems and municipalities are encouraged to use 2-day per week irrigation restrictions, such as those outlined in Sustainable Jersey’s model ordinance.
It is critical that we incorporate wise water practices into our daily routines, especially during the summer months. This will help us to avoid more stringent water restrictions as the summer progresses. We all need to do our parts and use water wisely, both indoors and out. On the plus side, this will result in lower water bills.
The DEP will continue to monitor water supplies very closely and advise the public, local governments, and water systems as appropriate. Up-to-date information can be found at www.njdrought.org. For more information on water conservation measures visit https://dep.nj.gov/conserve-water/
Other government and academic institutions also prepare drought-related indices and maps. One well-known example is the US Drought Monitor, which defines drought more broadly than DEP. These other resources may suggest drought or pre-drought conditions are present before actual water supplies are technically determined to be below normal by DEP’s Division of Water Supply and Geoscience.
