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Residents told to curb water use By Myles Murphy Ashland Daily Tidings The sudden and prolonged heat before summer even arrives is putting a strain on the city's ability to process clean water. "This year we've had such a warm June, and it warmed up so quickly, people just all of a sudden opened up their taps," Ashland Public Works Director Paula Brown said. "We can't keep up with the demand to treat the water (at Ashland's water treatment plant)," she said. This early in the summer, the problem is less a lack of water - springs are still feeding Reeder Reservoir at a healthy rate - than the low water temperatures. "The problem is not that there's not enough water coming in, it's that it's so cold we can't treat it." Public Works Superintendent Mike Morrison said. "We have more than enough water." For the past several days, the city has been monitoring water use as daytime temperatures have risen and stayed above 95 degrees. The high temperature in Ashland Friday was 96. "The demand has gone up to 7 million gallons a day, and that didn't happen until the middle of July last year," Brown said. "Seven million gallons of water this time of year is just unreasonable." City officials are asking residents to cut down on water use, particularly outside watering, with a goal of using less than 6 million gallons a day. "If we can catch up, then there won't be any problem, and it looks like we're starting to catch up," Morrison said late Friday afternoon after workers at the treatment plant brought news that efforts to tweak the process were paying off. Fresh, snow-melted water in the reservoir contains more particulate matter and is more difficult to process for drinking. When the water warms later in the summer, the city's treatment chemistry works more efficiently. With warmer water, the treatment plant can process about 8 million gallons a day, but at current water temperatures, 6.5 million in 24 hours is a stretch, leaving a daily water deficit in the city's treated water reservoirs if use stays at 7 million gallons a day. "If more gets used than we can produce, pretty soon we're just going run out of water and some neighborhoods will go dry," Morrison said. "But I've never seen that." Water for fighting fires in the city is also threatened if conservation efforts don't kick in soon. Although there is plenty of water in the creek and city staff does not yet anticipate curtailment, limits on water use will be considered if residents are unable to meet conservation goals, according to Brown. City water customers can significantly reduce their water use with the following tips: o Irrigate outside plants before 10 a.m. or after 7 p.m. to reduce evaporation, and don't over water lawns and plantings. o Check sprinkler systems to ensure they don't water adjacent streets or sidewalks. o Limit use of city water to wash sidewalks, walkways, streets, driveways, parking lots, or other hard surfaced areas, except where necessary for public health or safety. o Do not allow breaks within plumbing systems to last for more than 24 hours. o Limit use of city water to wash cars, boats, trailers, aircraft, or other vehicles without using a shutoff nozzle. The City of Ashland has numerous water conservation programs. See www.ashland.or.us/conservation or call 552-2062 for information. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -