Despite rain this month, there’s still serious doubt about the Tampa Bay region’s ability to manage the recent drought. Today, the Southwest Florida Water Management District, or SWFWMD decided to continue water restrictions in order to maintain the regional water supply.
Robyn Felix is a spokesperson with SWFWMD. She says the water restrictions will continue across all 16 counties because the lack of water during the previous year continues to impact water resources.
For the last several months, Southwest Florida has received far less rainfall than usual, especially during the spring. This has impacted a wide range of water resources.
The newest governing board member Michael Babb said that SWFWMD is responding to the water shortfall by postponing any revisions of current watering restrictions.
Felix says the current restrictions will continue at the phase one level.
But she says that much still depends on weather in the coming months.
While water conservation is a good plan for preserving the water supply, future rainfall is important for replenishing the reservoirs for potable resources.
To find out about water restrictions in your area, go to watermatters.org, and click on the water restriction icon.
