The Edwards Aquifer Authority moved the San Antonio Pool back into Stage 3 drought management effective Oct. 21, after the 10-day average at the Bexar County index well, J-17, slipped to 639.9 feet, below the Stage 3 line, per the EAA. That undoes a short stay in Stage 2 the EAA had declared retroactive to Oct. 5.
The EAA’s cut, 35%, applies to big permit holders such as water utilities. The EAA doesn’t enforce lawn watering; for SAWS customers the rules come from SAWS, which still lists Stage 3 in effect: sprinklers once a week on your day (set by the last number of your street address), 5-10 a.m. and 9 p.m.-midnight. Hand-held hoses are fine any time; drip and bubblers run Mondays and Fridays. Single-family homes using more than 20,000 gallons a month pay a $10.37 per thousand gallons surcharge.
As of 11:30 a.m. Monday, J-17 read 638.7 feet, with a 10-day average of 639.2, per the EAA’s provisional numbers. SAWS’s trigger is 640, and leaving a stage can be considered only after 15 days above it.