Governor M. Jodi Rell today issued a Drought Advisory for the State of Connecticut and directed all state agencies to immediately take steps to conserve water at state facilities. 

 

“We all must do our part to cut down on our water usage and the State of Connecticut will lead by example with our conservation efforts,” said Governor Rell.  “Rainfall totals over the past few months have been 35 percent below normal.  

 

“Some relief may reach Connecticut as early as next weekend, but in the meantime, water conservation is simple and just requires common sense.  Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth, take shorter showers, don’t water your lawn and do larger loads of laundry.”

 

“Reservoirs across the state continue to drop to well below capacity.  In fact, the Quinebaug, Housatonic and Naugatuck rivers are flowing at seriously low levels.  Town officials in Bristol, Manchester, Norwich, Sprague, Greenwich and Sharon have already enacted emergency rules regarding water conservation.

 

“I also want to remind the public that until the state receives significant rainfall, forest fire danger levels will remain high.  Enjoy the outdoors, but obey local laws regarding open fires, carefully dispose of hot coals and completely extinguish any smoking materials.  Never throw a lit cigarette out a car window.”

 

The Governor recommended that each of Connecticut’s municipalities designate an official ‘Drought Coordinator’ to serve as a liaison with local water utilities and appropriate state agencies. 

 

In addition, Governor Rell suggested the following measures be taken:

• All residents and businesses should set a voluntary water use reduction goal of 10% (whether served by public water systems or private wells)

• All residents and businesses should cut back on unnecessary water use, such as watering lawns and washing cars

• Residents and businesses should cooperate with their local water utilities as conditions may be different in various parts of the state and because utilities may have different utility plans

 

More detailed conservations measures may be found at the following website: http://www.ct.gov/dph/cwp/view.asp?a=3139&q=387296

 

At the Governor’s direction, the Connecticut Interagency Drought Workgroup has been meeting since early August and has been gathering and analyzing water resources data in order to monitor the status of Connecticut’s Water Resources.  The Governor directed the Workgroup to continue to monitor and analyze water resource data and meet on an ‘as needed’ basis in order to provide accurate and timely information and advice to residents. 

 

The Governor provided the following water efficiency tips:

 

Bathrooms:

• Do not let the water run while shaving or brushing teeth.

• Take short showers instead of tub baths.

 

Kitchen and Laundry:

• Keep drinking water in the refrigerator instead of letting the faucet run until the water is cool.

• Operate the dishwasher only when completely full.

• Use the appropriate water level or load size selection on the washing machine.

 

Outside:

• Sweep driveways, sidewalks and steps rather than hosing off.

• Wash the car with water from a bucket, or consider using a commercial car wash that recycles water.

• When using a hose, control the flow with an automatic shut-off nozzle.

 

Equipment:

• Repair all leaks. A leaky toilet can waste 200 gallons per day. To detect leaks in the toilet, add food coloring to the tank water. If the colored water appears in the bowl, the toilet is leaking.  Toilet repair advice is available at http://www.toiletology.com/index.shtml .

 

Watering:

• Detect and repair all leaks in irrigation systems.

 

 Additional tips are attached.

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