Conserving water key this summer, officials urge: Help the environment, save money

Summer's here and water authorities across Long Island are reminding residents that conservation is key — and water usage regulations and recommendations are to be followed to reduce consumption and save money.

The National Drought Information System has declared a moderate drought for most of Long Island. Central Suffolk County and the North Fork have seen normal rainfall while other parts of Suffolk and all of Nassau have had slightly below normal precipitation, according to Drought.gov.

The Suffolk County Water Authority said 70% of the 70 billion-plus gallons of drinking water pumped all year is actually used for irrigation systems. The Environmental Protection Agency has found that 50% of that water is wasted "due to inefficient lawn watering practices," SCWA noted. All of that can lead to water shortages — and higher water bills.

"During the summer months, our infrastructure — while robust and continuously improved — is overburdened by the steep increase in water demanded by automatic irrigation systems,” SCWA Chairman Charles Lefkowitz said in a statement.

The Long Island Water Conference, which covers all of Long Island, has not issued any conservation warnings, but is urging residents to follow watering regulations and be mindful of water use.

"This time of year everyone is on edge and urging residents to be as diligent as they can be," said Long Island Water Conference spokesperson James Neri. "The irrigation season on Long island is long. Typically from July 4 through Labor Day, everyone is making sure facilities keep pumping out."

Liberty Water, which serves 120,000 customers in Nassau County also urged customers to conserve water, noting water infrastructure can struggle to keep up during dry spells while keeping water tanks full, affecting water pressure. 

“Conservation efforts are important all year long,” said Deborah Franco, president of Liberty, New York Water. “Practicing smart water use this time of year is especially important and can benefit customers and the environment as we head into warmer weather and possibly dryer months.”

In both Nassau and Suffolk, residents are not allowed to water lawns between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., and usage is further limited to odd and even days, based on address: Homes and businesses with addresses ending in an odd number can only water on odd-numbered days, while those with addresses ending in even numbers can only water on even-numbered days.

Officials also note that most lawns only need about 1 inch of water per week, and lawns watered every day are more susceptible to burning, due to shallow roots. They recommend watering in early morning or at night to avoid high evaporation rates. 

The SCWA and many local water districts, such as Western Nassau, Freeport, Jericho, Plainview and others, are also reminding residents of many other water conservation tips, including taking advantage of water-saving devices like smart irrigation controllers.

Smart irrigation controllers ultimately pay for themselves within a year or two due to the amount of water saved, the SCWA said, though customers may use SCWA's WaterWise credits to purchase a controller.

"All of Long Island draws its water from a single-source aquifer hundreds of feet below the surface, containing trillions of gallons of water used by millions of people every day,” said SCWA CEO Jeffrey Szabo.

Most local water districts have conservation tips posted on their websites, and officials stress that residents who follow recommended guidelines can save money and the environment.