Stage 3 Water Restrictions Extended for Western Portion of Georgetown Water Service Area

Stage 3 water restrictions extended for the western portion of Georgetown water service area. Other Georgetown water customers may continue one-day-per-week watering

Customers in the western side of the City of Georgetown’s service area—generally the areas west of D.B. Wood Road and southwest of Williams Drive—will remain in Drought Stage 3 restrictions until further notice due to the prolonged drought and continued water supply challenges.

Watering with an irrigation system or hose-end sprinkler is prohibited during Drought Stage 3. Hand-watering is allowed any time of any day, including for lawns, foundations, plants, trees, and more. No one is exempted from these restrictions. Residents can report violations here.

“Our normal peak season for water demand ends in August, but we continue to see high water demand and are forecasted to have triple-digit weather into September,” City Manager David Morgan said. “Given the severity of the drought and continued high water usage, it isn’t safe for our water supply to bring the western area out of Stage 3 at this time.”

The City continues to work toward pulling more water from the City of Leander and completing the rehabilitation of the Southside Water Treatment Plant. 

The City expects to have a viable pump to pull additional water from the Leander connection by mid-September. Regulatory testing at the Southside Water Treatment Plant is scheduled for mid-September. 

After that, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has up to 60 days to review the results and clear the plant to deliver water to customers. 

The City is working with TCEQ to significantly reduce their timeline. The City is expediting these two projects and monitoring the drought and weather conditions with the goal of lifting the Drought Stage 3 restrictions as quickly as possible.

“We appreciate everyone who has followed our water restrictions so we can continue to provide safe drinking water for all our customers,” Morgan said. “We are pushing to bring on additional capacity and lift the restrictions as soon as possible.”

Georgetown water customers that remain in Stage 3 restrictions include but are not limited to residents and businesses:

• Southwest of Williams Drive
• West of D.B. Wood Road
• West of Southwest Bypass
• Parkside
• Santa Rita
• Liberty Hill extraterritorial jurisdiction
• Parmer Ranch
• Water Oak

Customers not in the affected area will remain in Drought Stage 2 restrictions, which allow for one-day-per-week outdoor watering. Strict compliance with the one-day schedule is required to avoid additional restrictions.

Several factors contributed to the City’s decision to keep 35 percent of its customers — including customers in the ETJ, outside the ETJ, and within City limits — in Drought Stage 3 restrictions:

• The Brazos River Authority moved into Drought Stage 2 restrictions for Lake Stillhouse and Lake Georgetown.
• The U.S. Drought Monitor moved Georgetown into an Exceptional Drought, (its highest level) on Aug. 24.
• Central Texas continues to see record-high, sustained temperatures, with 45 consecutive days of temperatures in triple digits.
• Gov. Greg Abbott on July 29 issued a disaster declaration for 37 counties, including Williamson County, because of the drought. Portions of Williamson County have not received any measurable rainfall in more than two months, according to the U.S. National Weather Service.
• The City is not receiving the full, contracted amount from the City of Leander, which is one of the primary sources of water for the affected area. The City has been working to install a pump at the Leander connection to pull any additional water Leander can provide; however, securing the right size and quality of pump has been challenging.
• The Southside Water Treatment Plant that also serves this area is offline for rehabilitation. Current estimates have the plant returning to full capacity in October 2023. The City is working with the contractor and regulatory agencies to expedite the project.
• The three pump stations servicing the affected area are unable to keep up with demand, and there are no alternatives to get more water to those pump stations for distribution. If pump stations cannot maintain pressure, it could lead to boil water notices.
• Georgetown water utility customers have continued to water outside of the current restrictions. Since July 17, the City has had 16 days when usage was greater than 90 percent of our treatment capacity.  During the summer months, 75 percent of the water produced each day by water treatment plants is used for lawn and landscape irrigation.

Information about Stage 3 water restrictions in effect in the western portion of the City’s water service area is available on the City website.