Bucks County residents asked to conserve water

Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority is asking residents to conserve water.

Customers have been asked to reduce water usage as much as possible, although there is no risk of running out of water, according to a notice posted to the authority’s website.

“Streamflow conditions across Pennsylvania are well below normal conditions for this time of year and abnormally dry conditions are impacting drinking water supplies,” said the notice to residents, which was published online.

BCWSA was asked last Thursday by the North Wales Water Authority, where it gets most of its water from, to issue a notice to customers.

“They were noticing some high usage and low flows,” said Erin Schulberger, the director of environmental compliance for BCWSA.

This is the first water conservation notice that has been issued at BCWSA in the eight years since she started working there.

Most of the state is experiencing abnormally dry conditions, while some parts in the southeast are seeing moderate drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Their model takes into account rain, streamflow, water reservoir levels, temperature, and soil moisture among other indicators. The Philadelphia International Airport got 0.24 inches of rain in May — about 8% of normal levels — according to the National Weather Service.

“This year, it has been dry starting kind of earlier in the year than maybe we would typically see, so we have kind of been on watch for a couple months now,” said Robert Woolston, the program manager of the Safe Drinking Water bureau at the Southeast Regional office of the Department of Environmental Protection.

Philadelphia, Mount Pocono and Reading experienced their driest May on record, according to the National Weather Service.

“We’re hoping it’s going to rain,” said Schulberger.

The BCWSA provides water and sewer services to 525,000 people in Southeastern Pennsylvania. It provides water services to Upper Southampton, Lower Southampton, Solebury, New Hope, Northampton, Newtown, Middletown, Langhorne, Penndel, Hulmeville townships in Bucks County, as well as West Vincent Township in Chester County.

Hydrant flushing, a process that releases water out at a high velocity to clean the pipes, has been canceled this season by the BCWSA, said Schulberger. Typically they carry out the process twice a year in the spring and the fall but will hold off on it now until the fall.

“I don’t like to issue water conservation notices because people tend to panic and start filling bathtubs of water,” Schulberger said.

“There’s no concern that you’re going to run out of water,” she said. “We just need you to kind of help us out a little bit here.”

Homeowners and businesses can decrease the amount of water they spend by following a few easy steps. Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority has outlined the following guidance for residents to follow: