TAMPA, FL — Local water officials are worried about supply issues after the latest estimates from Clearwater-based Tampa Bay Water, the state’s largest wholesale provider, indicate that the C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir will be dry by March, www.TBNWeekly.com reported in its January 12 edition.

Three years of drought and ongoing problems at the reservoir have landed the area in an unprecedented water crisis. Tampa Bay Water’s $146 million reservoir is cracking, and its levels were lowered to stem water loss, as WaterTech Online® reported.

The Southwest Florida Water Management District has issued tighter drought restrictions to help the area cope, and recently launched a new water-conservation campaign called “Skip a Week.” The campaign urges fall and winter lawn and garden watering every other week instead of weekly.

Robin Felix, media relations manager for the district, said in the article that the biggest concern was for Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, which are the most impacted in the district’s 16-county area. She noted that the reservoir is down to less than 2 billion gallons and that resupplying the reservoir is being made difficult with drought conditions that are impacting river flows.

Felix is quoted as saying that if water shortages continue as expected, groundwater supplies may be tapped.

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