Drought Contingency Plan

Stage 1 of the Drought Contingency Plan

Due to the issues at the City of Houston’s NEWPP, the Authority is experiencing difficulties in meeting the high demand under the extreme weather conditions. The Authority is implementing Stage 1 of our Drought Contingency Plan immediately. The Authority’s Drought Contingency Plan request that any customer receiving water from the Authority or well owner whose well is included under the Authority’s Harris-Galveston Subsidence District aggregate water well permit:

  • Check for and repair all leaks, dripping faucets, and running toilets.
  • Utilize water conservation measures such as displacement bags, low-flow shower heads and leak detection tablets. Additional water conservation tips can be found at www.irrygator.com;
  • Limit irrigation to no more than two days per week, between 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. following the schedules below:
    • Sundays and Thursdays for single family residential customers with even-numbered street addresses.
    • Saturdays and Wednesdays for single family residential customers with odd-numbered street addresses.
    • Tuesdays and Fridays for all other customers.
    • No watering on Mondays.

Compliance to the above recommendations is voluntary.

Stage 2 of the Drought Contingency Plan

The City of Houston (COH), the primary source of water for the North Harris County Regional Water Authority (Authority), has entered stage two of their Drought Contingency Plan, effective on August 27, 2023. The COH’s drought response calls for mandatory water conservations efforts to reduce water use, that will reduce the daily volume of water delivered. The Houston Public Works Release can be found under https://cityofhouston.news/stagetwodrought.

As required by the Authority’s Drought Contingency Plan, the Authority must enter Stage 2 of our Drought Contingency Plan, when the COH enters into Stage 2 water shortage of their Drought Contingency Plan. The Authority’s Drought Contingency Plan requires that any customer receiving water from the Authority or well owner whose well is included under the Authority’s Harris-Galveston Subsidence District aggregate water well permit:

  • Repair detectible water leaks within 72 hours of discovery;
  • Utilize water conservation measures such as displacement bags, low-flow shower heads and leak detection tablets;
  • Limit outdoor irrigation to the hours 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. of the following day on no more than two (2) days per week, in conformity with the following schedule (no watering on Mondays):
    • Sundays and Thursdays for single-family residential customers with even-numbered street addresses
    • Saturdays and Wednesdays for single-family residential customers with odd-numbered street addresses; and
    • Tuesdays and Fridays for all other customers

Compliance with the above requirements is mandatory.

Preparing for the Freeze

H2O Innovation staff will be mobilized and standing by to deal with water main breaks and water plant issues. If you experience a pipe freeze on your side of your water meter outside your home, H20 can only turn your water off at the meter. If you have a pipe broken inside your home, you can isolate your private cut off, usually located on the side of your home below your water spigot. Or inside the garage. It’s a good idea to have the names of a couple of plumbers should you need them, as H2O does not repair homeowner private water lines.

Freeze Preparation Tips

  1. Wrap outdoor and garage pipes.
  2. Remove water hoses and wrap water spigot.
  3. Drain and turn off sprinklers system.
  4. Turn off water to your washer if in garage.
  5. If you leave your house before a freeze, turn off the water at your private cut off valve and leave your heat on.

Protect your pipes when it freezes:

  1. Open cabinets under sinks to let your house’s heat warm the pipes.
  2. If your pipes freeze, turn off the water at your private cut off valve. This prevents broken pipes from leaking into house after they thaw.

Let faucets drip from the cold and hot taps or run water through your indoor faucets before you go to sleep.