LOGAN – In response to the continuing drought in northern Utah, Logan Mayor Holly Daines says that the city is adopting the slogan that “Yellow is the new green.”
“We’re received a lot of questions about what we can all do about the water situation,” Daines said during a routine report to members of the Logan City Council on Tuesday. “I just want to let our residents know that our Water Department put out a really good press release with that kind of information just last week.”
That statement emphasized that drinking water is not in short supply and that mandatory water restrictions are not yet necessary.
But conservation of available water is needed now, according to Daines.
“We are requesting that residents decrease the frequency of their watering (of lawns and gardens),” the mayor explained, “just as our Parks Department has cut their water usage by half.”
Officials of the city Water and Wastewater Department say they have been preparing for a situation like this one for years by developing strong water sources.
While Logan’s culinary water supply is adequate to provide for all normal demands, city water managers advise that their “safety buffer” will continue to decrease as the summer progresses.
Since the vast majority of summer water demand is for outdoor irrigation purposes, city officials say that modifying watering schedules is the most effective way to reduce water usage.
They suggest that lawns and gardens should be watered no more than two or three times per week. That watering should take place between 6 and 10 p.m., preferably on evenings when the wind is relatively calm.
City officials also advise that sprinkler systems should be kept in good repair or replaced with more efficient drip systems.
Finally, they add that residents should let their lawns grow to 3- to 4-inch lengths to help them survive or let their lawns go entirely dormant.
“When you see our parks starting to turn brown instead of green,” Daines told the council members, “that just means that our lawns are going dormant because we’ve cut back on the watering.
“We encourage residents to do the same and to bear with us when our parks are not in the impeccable condition that city workers usually keep them.”
Local residents can obtain advice on ways to reduce their outdoor water use by scheduling e a free water check by calling 435-797-5529 or going online to www.cwel.usu.edu/watercheck
City officials also emphasize that they are reluctantly ready to impose mandatory water restrictions if drought condition worsen, unforeseen circumstances arise or voluntary water conservation efforts fail.