Lincoln gives residents water conservation tips amid drought

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – The Lincoln Transportation and Utilities Department is encouraging residents to start water conservation efforts.

This recommendation comes as warmer than normal temperatures and below normal precipitation are expected through June.

Lincoln Water System Superintendent Steve Owen said the system monitors weather and water conditions year-round and follows its Water Management Plan when the city experiences hot and dry conditions.

On a hot summer day, residents will use more than 50% of Lincoln’s daily supply to water grass and other landscape plantings, he said.

Much of this water is wasted through overwatering, evaporation, irrigation system leaks, and poorly maintained systems.

While the city is expecting dry and warmer conditions through June, it is equipped to manage the lack of moisture.

After the last major drought in 2012, two new wells were added near Ashland, so Lincoln won’t be as affected as it was back then.

Even though the Lincoln Water System is prepared to deal with the forecast, there are ways consumers can help.

“Customers can also make a significant positive contribution when it comes to conserving water,” Owen said. “One way residents can do their part is by taking their sprinkler systems off the automatic function and instead become more invested in their lawn’s daily maintenance by turning the sprinklers on only when needed, which can be as little as once or twice per week.”

Other water conservation methods include the following:

• Water during early morning hours to avoid water evaporation.
• Avoid watering on hot or windy days to reduce evaporation.
• When mowing, remove only one-third of the grass height at one time. When grass is cut too close to the root system, the system must grow deeper, which requires more water.
• Minimize or stop fertilization in the spring. Heavily fertilized lawns require more water and are more susceptible to drought. Fall fertilization is the most beneficial.
• Aerate your lawn to encourage healthy root growth and allow water to soak deep into the ground.
• Mulch grass clippings to retain soil moisture and reduce the need for fertilizer.
• Monitor soil moisture using a shovel or measuring probe.
• Sharpen your mower blades. Dull blades injure the grass, requiring more water for the grass to heal.
• Use rain barrels to collect water for landscape watering.
• Reduce the amount of area needing irrigation by investing in a sustainable rock garden.

Lincoln Water System customers use 30% less water today than in the 1980s because of improved plumbing fixtures, increased regulations, and a greater awareness of the need to conserve the valuable and finite resource.

The system has also increased its summer capacity by more than 30% over the last 10 years by building additional wells.

The last time the city implemented mandatory water restrictions was in 2012, when a lack of rainfall led to historically low Platte River flows.

In 2019, the city asked residents to voluntarily reduce water use after flood damage to the wellfields on the Platte River.

For more information on water conservation and on the Lincoln Water System Water Management Plan, visit water.lincoln.ne.gov.