JACKSON, Wyo. — It’s been a ridiculously hot summer for the last couple of weeks.
Here at Buckrail, the question recently has been: What’s the status of the town’s water supply, and how is it holding up?
Dan Stewart, the Water Utility Manager for the Town of Jackson shared with Buckrail that despite extreme heat, dryness and elevated use, the Town has had adequate water supply this year.
Most of the positive news for this summer’s supply is due to two new wells, which were commissioned in West Jackson before July 4. The wells, according to Stewart, essentially double the water capacity of that zone.
Stewart attributes part of this change to messaging from the Town surrounding water use.
“[The messaging and new wells mean] that this year even with elevated water use during this persisting drought, we remain able to adequately supply water to all users with a robust margin for fire suppression in all zones,” Stewart told Buckrail. “We do not foresee any pending emergency water restrictions with this new supply in the near future.”
Last year, by contrast, there was a mechanical failure in a West Jackson well that resulted in reduced output by approximately 40%, which, coupled with excessive water use during the persistent drought, required the Town to enforce water restrictions for the remainder of the summer. The faulty well was restored to full operational capacity during the offseason this year.
The system is now more “robust and redundant,” according to Stewart, but the following measures are still recommended to residents in order to better conserve water through the hotter months of the year:
- Irrigate every other day. Even addresses water on even dates and odd addresses water on odd dates.
- Plant native and drought-tolerant grass and plants that need less water.
- Sprinkle lawns and exterior plants at dawn or dusk.
- Don’t water when it is raining or during drought.
- Raise lawn mower blades to three to four inches.
