Amid the ongoing drought and continued triple digit temperatures in the region, Boerne Utilities water customers will enter Stage 2 Water Restrictions effective Monday, August 7, 2023. Stage 2 restrictions apply to potable and reclaimed water customers.
The City has also directed members of Permitting and Code Compliance and Boerne Police to increase patrols during prohibited watering times and issue citations to violators. Any water customer watering outside their approved day is subject to a fine upwards of $1,000.
“We all have a responsibility to be good stewards of our natural resources,” Director of Communications Chris Shadrock said. "Unfortunately, we continue to see record high usage from customers, which is placing additional strain on our equipment."
During the summer, utilities customers on average nearly triple their water usage compared to winter months. Almost all this increase is used for yard irrigation and puts added stress on the utility system. With high heat and little to no rain chances expected over the next 7-10 days, our peak water usage is unusually limited, which means we need to continue to be proactive in our water conservation efforts and reduce the use of water to irrigate yards.
Last summer Boerne Utilities began increasing public outreach through more frequent phone messages, social media posts, local media reports, and website updates to inform customers on water restrictions and ways to report violators. Since then, Boerne Utilities has received more than 150 reports of water violations from residents.
By moving to the next stage of restrictions, Boerne will continue to have some of the strictest watering restrictions compared to other Hill Country municipal water providers.
Under Stage 2, watering with an irrigation system is limited to one day a week, with curtained watering hours, but excessive water use and waste needs to be eliminated. Below is additional information related to Stage 2 restrictions.
Stage 2 Water Restrictions
Under Stage 2 Water Restrictions, residential and commercial utility customers are required to limit the use of water for landscape irrigation. These rules also apply to reclaimed water customers.
Customers are permitted to use individual sprinklers or sprinkler systems for lawns, gardens, or other landscaped areas on ONE DAY PER WEEK as assigned.
- Watering is only allowed from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on your designated day.
- Watering on weekends is not allowed.
- Watering by hand with a hose or bucket allowed any time.
Designated watering days are assigned according to the last number of the street address. If your address ends in:
- 0 or 1: Water on Monday
- 2 or 3: Water on Tuesday
- 4 or 5: Water on Wednesday
- 6 or 7: Water on Thursday
- 8 or 9: Water on Friday
