Most of Chase County is now under voluntary water restrictions.
Strong City Public Works Director Matt Markley tells KVOE News the restrictions haven’t been formally published, so they aren’t officially in effect yet, but they were approved June 26.
Residents are being asked to let their ponds go dormant and cut back on outdoor watering.
Even though the restrictions aren’t officially in place, Markley thanked residents for their response with water use already down some 20 percent. That’s important because Strong City and other places in Chase County have received less than 10 inches of rainfall this year and the northern half of the county is in extreme drought, according to the US Drought Monitor. Southern Chase County ranges from abnormally dry to severe drought.
The restrictions involve Public Wholesale District No. 26, which serves Cottonwood Falls, Strong City and Chase County Rural Water District No. 1.
On Friday, Gov. Jeff Colyer announced a drought emergency for 50 counties, including all counties in the KVOE listening area. Click here for that story.
