Much of the San Antonio region has been under Extreme or Exceptional Drought since mid-March.
SAN ANTONIO — After nearly a week of being at Stage 5 water restrictions – an unprecedented measure amid ongoing severe drought in the region – the Edwards Aquifer Authority announced it’s reduced constraints for permit holders back down to Stage 4 as of Thursday.
The restriction decrease means 1,233 customers permitted to draw aquifer groundwater in Medina, Bexar, Atascosa, Caldwell, Guadalupe, Comal and Hays counties must reduce how much they’re able to withdraw annually to 60% of that amount.
“These reductions apply to all Edwards Aquifer groundwater permit holders authorized to pump more than three acre-feet annually,” the Edwards Aquifer Authority (EAA) said in a release. “This includes industrial and agricultural users, as well as water utilities authorized to pump water from the Edwards Aquifer for delivery to their respective customers.”
All affected people must report their pumping totals to the EAA on a monthly basis.
The EAA reduced the restrictions to Stage 4 amid sightly improved aquifer conditions, buoyed by several days of strong rain. Officials said the 10-day average at the J-17 index well in Bexar County is 625.2 feet above sea level, which is within the Stage 4 threshold for EAA’s Critical Period Management Plan (CPM).
In addition, the Comal Springs water flow is 64 cubic feet per second and the San Marcos Spring’s 10-day average is 82 cubic feet per second.
South Texas’s ongoing major drought pushed the EAA – which manages the region’s primary water source servicing 2.5 million people – to issue Stage 5 restrictions last Friday. Stage 5 restrictions are triggered when the J-17 index well in Bexar County is under 625 feet, and they required permit holders to reduce the amount of water they were drawing to 56% their annual allotment.
The last time the EAA’s San Antonio Pool was below Stage 4 restrictions was Sept. 16, 2024.
The EAA does not enforce lawn watering activities or other general water limitations. And the restrictions updates didn’t impact San Antonio Water Systems customers in the Alamo City, where households have remained in Stage 3 restrictions. That means they’re limited to:
- Watering their yards once a week, between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m. or 9 p.m. and midnight on their designated day
- Watering with a handheld hose permitted at any time
- Watering with drip irrigation through the ground is allowed Mondays and Fridays from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. or from 9 a.m. to midnight.
SAWS will remain in Stage 3 for now, according to Communications Director Anne Hayden.
“SAWS is prepared to successfully manage severe drought with diversified new water supplies and water conservation programs,” Hayden said last week. “SAWS customers have been keep to minimizing the effects of this drought.”
For more information about the Edward Aquifer water restrictions, click here.