Drought and near-drought conditions have been lingering across the state for months, and it’s slowly beginning to take a toll on Lake Catoma.

Cullman’s primary water source, Lake Catoma, has dipped to nine feet below full pool. If it drops another foot — as officials expect it might over the next 1-2 weeks — it would “trigger” the first level of the city’s emergency water conservation plan that could call for a voluntary reduction in water usage.

The current conditions are nowhere near as low as the 2007 drought, which saw the lake drop to more than 26 feet below full pool, though it’s an obvious sign the drought affecting the state is beginning to have an effect.

As of this week, portions of Cullman are under a D0 (Abnormally Dry) condition. The northeast corner of the state is experience a D4 (Exceptional Drought), while the easter part of the state is currently in a D2 (Severe Drought).

If the lake reaches 10-feet below full pool, water treatment plant manager David Freeman said the next step is to notify city government and make a decision in regards to potential voluntary restrictions.

“The city would notify the wholesale water customers just to let them know the situation, and then we’d have to decide if we actually wanted to enact voluntary reductions,” he said. “It’s optional, and would just depend on the situation.”

Though it’s certainly worth noting at this point, Freeman said there’s no cause for alarm at the moment. But, if the lake dips to 15 feet below full pool, it might be time to make some usage changes to keep it from falling further.

If the lake reaches the 15-foot threshold, it would trigger Phase II water conservation restrictions, which call for customers to not hose down their driveways; fill pools; and limited watering of lawns and car washing.

The Cullman Utilities Board has built a secondary water source for the area, the Duck River reservoir, though the pipeline to pull water from that lake is not yet complete.

 

Trent Moore may be contacted at 256-734-2131, ext. 134.