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Drought may cause mandatory water restrictions in area

By John Ahrens, wsoctv.com
By John Ahrens, wsoctv.com
There’s a chance Charlotte may see mandatory water restrictions this week due to the drought in the area, according to meteorologist John Ahrens.
 Residents like Roger Worley are being asked to be careful about how much water they use.
 "You can't be wasteful. You might pump your well dry if you do," Worley said.
 "That guy across the street, he ain’t got any water and he thinks his well has gone dry," Worley said.

MOUNT HOLLY, N.C. — This weekend's rain has many streams across Charlotte looking better.

Water managers say you have to look at the water supply for the whole region.

"We need it in a more sustained fashion because we have tens of thousands of acres of water bodies and many feet to be filled,” Sam Perkins said.

According to drought managers, there is a chance mandatory water restrictions could be put in place this week. For residents this means limits will be placed on water use and those not in compliance could face warnings and fines.

"We need to continue to voluntarily conserve so we're not forced to mandatorily conserve," Perkins said.

There is some hope for the Charlotte area from the current rainfall.

The mountains saw more than 6 inches of rain in some areas.
All that water flows downstream through the Catawba and Yadkin rivers and into the local supply.
"Also in our favor, the weather pattern as we get closer to winter, It looks like there will be an above-average season for rain with El Nino in charge. Certainly this week we'll see a better chance for showers," Ahrens said.

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