Durham Water Management says reservoirs roughly 84–85% full; county moved into more severe drought category

Don Greeley, director of Water Management, briefed the Durham City Council on regional drought conditions and local reservoir status during the work session.

Greeley said recent state drought guidance indicates a number of counties have moved into more severe drought categories and that Durham County recently moved into that elevated category. He reported Durham's reservoirs are approximately "84–85% full" and said the hydraulic model, which runs weekly on more than a century of hydrologic and streamflow data, has not yet indicated a need to trigger water restrictions.

Greeley told council that regional partners (Raleigh, Cary, Fuquay-Varina and Holly Springs) are coordinating messaging and decisions about stage triggers; for example, Raleigh uses a Falls Lake threshold (85%) as a monthly trigger and moved earlier when their reservoir level slipped below that threshold. He said Durham could access Jordan Lake allocation through partner municipalities if necessary but that, for now, the city remains in a cautious posture.

Staff described public outreach measures already underway — water-conservation messaging, leak detection, and promotion of drought-tolerant landscaping — and said they will continue to monitor conditions and work regionally on any joint outreach or coordinated stage changes.

Council members asked technical questions about comparative reservoir conditions, regional coordination and the long-term projections for supply. Greeley emphasized cautious optimism while noting the need for continued conservation education and monitoring.

No mandatory restrictions were announced at the work session; staff committed to continuing updates to council as conditions evolve.