N.J. declares drought warning as conditions worsen; state’s biggest water supplier orders mandatory conservation

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy declared a drought warning for the state Wednesday, calling the more than 500 wildfires that erupted since October “staggering” and the announcement coming as water supplies from streams and reservoirs have dropped precipitously with no relief forecast.

Murphy and other officials speaking at a news conference called current conditions “unprecedented” and said the dry weather stretches to August. Months of average or above-average rain are needed to bring things back to normal, they noted. It is the first time the state has declared a drought warning since 2016.

The state is not yet calling for mandatory restrictions by declaring an even higher-level drought emergency, but is voluntarily asking people to stop watering lawns and to take other conservation measures.

However, New Jersey American Water, the state’s biggest drinking water supplier with 2.9 million customers, issued a mandatory conservation notice immediately after the state’s declaration. It is asking customers to “limit all nonessential water usage by pausing all outdoor watering until spring and conserving as much as possible indoors.”

» READ MORE: How you can conserve water as Pa. and N.J. drought drags on

State officials had been criticized by some people attending a virtual state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) meeting Tuesday for not declaring an emergency that would invoke mandatory restrictions. For now, though, Murphy is asking residents to do “the right thing” on their own, rather than being forced.

“The big-picture takeaway is that every one of us needs to do whatever we can to conserve water,” Murphy said. “And it goes without saying, this is not the time to be lighting outdoor fires. We simply cannot risk it.”

Murphy said the dry conditions are likely to continue.

“By every indication, it looks like we have a very dry winter ahead of us,” Murphy said. “That means this drought could grow even more severe, which may eventually require mandatory water restrictions. But we’re not there yet.”

New Jersey has three levels of drought declarations — watch, warning, and emergency — with each ratcheting up protective actions from voluntary to mandatory. New Jersey declared a drought watch in October. Wednesday’s upgrade to a warning enables the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to direct transfers among water systems, control releases from reservoirs, and change stream and river flows to meet needs of water suppliers without harming the environment.

Officials call the current level of dryness “unprecedented,” saying it contributes to wildfires that have been difficult to extinguish even after days or weeks of firefighting. Conditions have resulted in triple the number of acres burning in 2024 than in an average year.

Since early October, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service has responded to 537 wildfires, a more than 1,300% increase in wildfires over the same period last year.

Moreover, the 1,300 wildfires since the start of the year have burned 11,000 acres. The average per year is 1,071 wildfires, with 4,000 acres burned.

One firefighter has already died in a wildfire at the New Jersey/New York border, and one man has been charged with setting a Central New Jersey wildfire with shotgun shells designed to spread flames. Up to 95% of wildfires are caused by humans, whether intentionally or unintentionally, through a dropped cigarette, an improperly extinguished backyard fire, or other ways.

» READ MORE: Thousands of New Jersey firefighters have had a rough few weeks, fighting multiple simultaneous wildfires across the state

DEP Commissioner Shawn LaTourette called the dry spell since August an “extraordinarily persistent” one that has led to low water levels, such as at the Manasquan Reservoir in Monmouth County, which has dropped to 50% capacity. The 770-acre reservoir provides drinking water for residents.

Greg McLaughlin, chief of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, said the fire service uses the Keetch-Byram Drought Index, which takes into account ground moisture and the mix of leaf and pine needles on the forest floor. The scale maxes out at 800. New Jersey is at 748.

“These numbers have never been seen by the Forest Fire Service in our 118-year history,” McLaughlin said, noting that a score of 800 indicates soil dryness eight inches deep.

“The impact of this dryness on wildfires cannot be overstated,” he said, because fires will continue to burn downward to consume fuel.

Mark McDonough, president of New Jersey American Water, said he strongly encouraged customers to comply with conservation measures, such as by not running sprinklers, taking shorter showers, and running the dishwasher only when it’s fully loaded.

The company also asked customers to use a commercial car wash that recycles water instead of washing vehicles at home, fix indoor and outdoor leaks, insulate exposed water pipes to avoid wasting water while they heat up, and consider using energy-efficient appliances.

» READ MORE: How you can conserve water as Pa. and N.J. drought drags on

New Jersey State Climatologist David Robinson told officials at the DEP meeting on Tuesday that it was the third-driest September on record since 1895.

“To add insult to injury, along came a map I never thought in my 30-plus years as a state climatologist that I would see: a shutout for precipitation in the month of October,” Robinson said.

Officially, the state averaged 0.02 inches of rainfall in October. Normal averages are 4.19 inches. November has also been dry, except for one-quarter of an inch that fell Sunday.

In all, the state has averaged two inches of rain since August when normally a foot of rain should have fallen over that period, meaning the state is facing a 10-inch deficit.

“You can see a very bleak picture across the entire state, one that is only worsening,” Robinson said.