CLEARWATER – Under Tampa Bay Water’s Water Shortage Mitigation Plan the region has returned to Normal Conditions, indicating river flows are adequate and rainfall is in surplus.

However, it’s important that residents continue to conserve water to help Tampa Bay Water replenish the C.W. Bill Young Reservoir for the next dry season. As of Sept. 4, the reservoir sits at 10.57 billion gallons, 68% of its 15.5-billion-gallon capacity. The utility aims to have the reservoir full by Oct. 1, 2024, or when summer rains end and river flows decline.

Regional Water Facts as of September 1, 2024:

• Tampa Bay Water lowered its Water Shortage Stage 1 Drought Alert to Normal Conditions.
• Regional rainfall is at a 0.8-inch surplus for the past 12 months.
• Rainfall in August averaged about 12.1 inches, 4.2 inches above normal.
• River flows are at a 4.0 mgd surplus averaged over the past 12 months.
• Regional water demands in August averaged 188.16 mgd, 12.89 mgd lower than August 2023 and 2.36 mgd higher than July 2024.
• Tampa Bay Water is adding 200 million gallons to the regional reservoir each day following Tropical Storm Debby.

Tampa Bay Water’s Water Shortage Stages are defined under the utility’s Water Shortage Mitigation Plan. Stages are triggered by three indicators: rainfall, river flows and reservoir levels to proactively mitigate water supply shortages driven by prolonged, below-normal hydrologic conditions.

The utility declared a Stage 1 Drought Alert on Oct. 1, 2023, due to below-average regional rainfall on a 12-month rolling average. The following month, the Southwest Florida Water Management District issued once-per-week watering restriction for Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties. The District has since extended that water shortage order through Dec. 31, 2024, to help Tampa Bay Water refill its regional reservoir prior to the region's next dry season. Watering restrictions, combined with County enforcement and cooler temperatures and normal rainfall in the winter and spring months, helped save up to 33 million gallons of water per day (mgd).

Residents should continue to skip water cycles when it rains, or when rain is in the forecast. If watering is needed, make sure it’s only on your designated day, which you can find at MyWaterDay.org.

At its August meeting, Tampa Bay Water’s board of directors approved a resolution supporting year-round one-day-per-week watering restrictions throughout the Tampa Bay area. Currently, Pasco County and the City of Tampa have year-round, once-weekly watering restrictions for their drinking water systems.

“The one-day-per-week schedule made a significant and tremendous difference in our ability to deal with the recent drought and we know that going from two-day to one-day-per-week watering can result in significant savings of potable water,” said Tampa Bay Water Chairman Harry Cohen. “The purpose of this resolution is simply to encourage other local governments in our jurisdiction to consider moving to once-weekly watering.”