CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Catawba-Wateree Drought Management Advisory Group announced Monday morning that the continued dry weather conditions and above-average temperatures have placed the Catawba-Wateree River Basin in a Stage 1 drought.
Stage 1 is the second of five drought stages outlined in the LIP and recommends voluntary water conservation by water users across the Basin, in addition to operational adjustments by Duke Energy.
The LIP is the drought management plan major water users in the region employ to share responsibility and set priorities to conserve the limited water supply during drought conditions.
"While some areas of the Basin have received scattered rainfall, the lack of widespread precipitation the past several weeks and high temperatures have resulted in increased drought conditions," said Ed Bruce, P.E., Duke Energy, CW-DMAG coordinator. "We are asking the community to conserve water and energy as we enter the height of the summer season and the typically drier fall period."
Continued below normal rainfall and very hot temperatures have pushed two of the three LIP drought indicators into Stage 1. Water storage in the 11-reservoir Catawba-Wateree Hydroelectric Project continues to decline and stream flows feeding the reservoirs are well below normal.
Earlier this month, the Catawba-Wateree River Basin entered Stage 0 of the LIP which is a drought watch stage and prompted the CW-DMAG to closely monitor conditions. After observing declining trends in the triggers, the group decided to proactively declare Stage 1 conditions.
"We wanted to be proactive in making the community aware of increased drought conditions and ask customers to be mindful of water use," explained Barry McKinnon, Mooresville Public Utilities Director. "The sooner we start conserving, the better for our region as we work together to preserve our shared water resources."
The CW-DMAG will continue monitoring the drought conditions and work collectively to protect the water supply and other uses of the Catawba-Wateree River.
For more information about the CW-DMAG and the LIP, visit here.
Read more top trending stories on wsoctv.com:
- CMPD: Man found killed inside home near Lake Wylie
- NTSB: F-16 warned of nearby plane seconds before crash
- Jury selection for Kerrick trial to begin Monday
- FORECAST: Heat index values to push temps over 100 degrees
- $1 million Powerball ticket sold in Cherryville set to expire
WSOC
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
