October 6, 2008

ISSUE 1239

While the summer rainy season and Hurricane Fay brought drought relief to much of the state, rainfall in Southwest Florida was not sufficient to break the grip of multi-year drought that has left groundwater levels, lake levels and stream flows far below normal.

On Sept. 30, the SWFWMD governing board reviewed water resource data presented by staff hydrologist Granville Kinsman and voted unanimously to extend the current water shortage order, which limits landscape irrigation to one day a week, until Feb. 27, 2009.
The region’s two big suppliers, Tampa Bay Water and the Peace River/Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority, are both are relying on emergency authorizations to meet current demand.

FFVA’s Regulatory Affairs Manager Alan Peirce said, “The data presented clearly shows that surface and groundwater resources are already declining, and we are just entering the six- to eight-month dry season. I don’t think the board had any choice but to continue the water shortage order.