Regional water use way down in May
Mother Nature watered our lawns instead
Here’s more proof that May was an unusually wet month in Wenatchee: The regional water system pumped 96 million gallons less this May than in May 2009. That’s a drop in customer demand of about 26 percent.
“This is a good example of how irrigation can impact the system,” Steve King, Public Works director for the city of Wenatchee, said in an e-mail.
The regional system serves Wenatchee and East Wenatchee customers through three entities: the city of Wenatchee, the East Wenatchee Water District and Chelan County PUD. Water comes from the Eastbank Aquifer just north of Rocky Reach Dam.
The regional system pumped 272,840,000 gallons in May 2010, compared to 369,193,000 gallons in May 2009.
Ron Slabaugh, Water Resources manager for Chelan PUD, said water use typically doubles in the summer as residents use domestic water to wash vehicles and to irrigate lawns, gardens and landscaping. Chelan County PUD encourages water conservation by promoting the use of Xeriscape (drought-tolerant) landscaping. Water conservation tips, games and trivia also are available on the Chelan PUD website and at Water Use It Wisely.
