Amarillo officials explain Stage 1 drought, urge voluntary conservation

Amarillo water staff told the City Council on Aug. 25 that the city triggered a Stage 1 drought declaration on Aug. 17 after reservoir storage fell to the plan’s 60% threshold, and they urged residents and businesses to follow voluntary outdoor watering restrictions.

“When we reached that 60% storage level, that's when we triggered our, stage 1 as part of our plan,” said Mr. Hooper, the staff presenter, who walked council through reservoir operation, supply sources and recent operational changes. He said the storage reservoir holds about 500 million gallons and that the city receives roughly 36 million gallons a day (MGD) from Cremois while the well field supplements with about 32–35 MGD when pushed.

Hooper listed factors behind the drawdown: prolonged heat (he cited 35 days above 100°F so far this summer), unusually low rainfall year-to-date (about 4.63 inches vs. a ~14-inch average) and high customer demand. Staff said they moved to odd/even, overnight irrigation schedules, cut municipal irrigation in parks and temporarily closed splash pads to reduce demand.

Council members pressed staff on operational details, including the treatment-plant throughput and the mix of lake versus well-water in the system. Council heard that the treated-water plant has been pushed up to roughly 48 MGD on peak days, while current reservoir recovery is running at only about 3–5 MGD net after evaporation and demand. Hooper said these are fragile gains and that a catastrophic failure on the Cremois line would leave the city dependent on well-field capacity.

Why it matters: the briefing gave council and the public a clearer picture of the city’s water balance and near-term operational risks. Staff framed Stage 1 as voluntary conservation — not mandatory restrictions — but said the city remains prepared to escalate if storage declines further. Council asked staff to continue publishing trend updates so residents can see progress.