Conserving water during the drought

Let us know: How do you and your family plan to conserve water this summer?

Some Washoe County parks are irrigated by ditches, which are diversions of the Truckee River. The Federal Water Master determines when the ditch system will be turned off based on flows in the Truckee.

The Highland Ditch was turned off in early June. It was the only source of irrigation for the off-leash and multi-use pasture at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park. As a result, the pasture is now closed to the public. In addition, Washoe County will reduce irrigation water at the Washoe Golf Course by 42 percent once the Steamboat Ditch, its primary source of water, is shut off.

As we enter what is expected to be an extremely dry summer, Washoe County is conserving water the following ways:

• Reducing irrigation use by ten percent on landscaping around County buildings.
• Parks not irrigated by treated or ditch water have reduced irrigation use by 10 percent.
• Washoe County reduced approximately 119,000 square foot of turf at Cold Springs and Lemmon Valley Parks.

Washoe County wants to know: How do you and your family plan to conserve water this summer?

Let us know by commenting at Open Washoe, our online community forum.