DENVER — Denver Water commissioners could decide at a Wednesday board meeting on implementing Stage 1 drought restrictions for customers across its service area.
The utility is targeting a 20% reduction in water use as it's facing severe drought conditions and Denver Water warns low snowpack could impact supply this year.
If Denver's Board of Water Commissioners approves the Stage 1 drought restrictions Wednesday, the limits would be in place through April of next year. In the meantime, Denver Water is asking everyone to start conserving now. This would be the first time that level of restriction has been in place since 2013, according to the utility. Other areas, such as Thornton and Erie, are already under restrictions.
Environment
Your guide to water restrictions across the Denver metro and beyond
As of last week, Denver Water’s supply reservoirs are at 80% full, which is lower than the historic median for storage at this time of year.
“At present, the South Platte Basin snowpack is at a 40-year record low. Snowpack in the Colorado River Basin is similarly concerning, ranking among the lowest five years on record,” according to Denver Water staff.
“The goal of Denver Water’s drought response is to protect the community’s investment in landscapes and preserve water for health, safety, and economic vitality to the greatest extent possible,” according to Denver Water staff.
What could a Stage 1 Drought Declaration look like for you?
There could be assigned watering days and limited outdoor watering to just two days a week. Denver Water is also urging customers to hold off on watering lawns until at least mid-May.
Denver International Airport (DIA), which uses Denver Water, said within the past few years, it has put in place several water-saving measures.
“We have recently completed water reduction improvements in our existing restrooms and installed low-flow fixtures in our recent concourse expansions that have resulted in a 25% annual water reduction from 2022 to 2024,” a DIA spokesperson told Denver7.
That airport’s decrease in water usage still happened despite seeing a 19% increase in passengers. The DIA spokesperson also told Denver7 that they will soon implement restrictions on their irrigation system.
“Denver Water has not communicated specific restrictions that will impact the airport's day-to-day operations. DEN has a small irrigation system at our Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting Station 1 that will be put on restrictions,” a DIA spokesperson said.
A car wash manager said the business has already have water-saving measures in place by using 80% recycled water but have also recently made some new changes.
“We did reduce the amount of chemicals we're putting on cars, so we are putting them on a little bit later and turning them off a little bit sooner just to conserve that water,” Hello Deluxe Car Wash Manager Chris Heckle said. “But when we do let our customers clean their mats, they're using fresh water, so we would ask them to use less."
