LCRA considering more outdoor watering limits in March
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Due to ongoing drought conditions, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) said it would consider moving to Stage 2 of its drought response March 1.
The switch would require LCRA customers to increase water-saving measures and limit outdoor watering to once a week. The restriction would impact cities, businesses, industries and lakeside property owners that draw water directly from the Highland Lakes.
LCRA said it was last in Stage 2 of its drought response from August 2023 through June 2024.
According to LCRA, the combined storage of Lake Buchanan and Lake Travis were at about 51% of capacity.
“It looks like we’ll be headed into Stage 2 in early March, and we wanted to give people a heads up that outdoor watering may soon be limited to once a week,” said John Hofmann, LCRA executive vice president of water. “We know people are getting ready for spring, and we can’t stress strongly enough how important it is to use drought-tolerant plants that can survive and thrive on watering no more than once a week.”
LCRA firm water customers include:
- Austin
- Burnet
- Cedar Park
- Cottonwood Shores
- Dripping Springs
- Granite Shoals
- Horseshoe Bay
- Lago Vista
- Leander
- Marble Falls
- Pflugerville
- West Travis County Public Utility Agency
- Multiple municipal utility districts, water control and improvement districts
- Water supply corporations
LCRA said Stage 2 would remain in effect until the combined storage of lakes Buchanan and Travis increases to at least 1.1 million acre-feet, or about 55% of capacity.
