-- — The Batesville Water and Gas Utility board has asked Mayor Rick Fledderman to declare a Water Lawn Sprinkling Ban on all lawn sprinkling in the Batesville water service area.  These restrictions are being implemented beginning Tuesday, July 24, and apply to all Batesville, Oldenburg and Morris residents using water from the City of Batesville and also includes residents on or near Bischoff reservoir who use water from the city’s reservoir, according to water utility manager  Steve Wintz,

Batesville Water and Gas Utility is asking all of its customers to abide by the mandatory restrictions and conserve water whenever possible.

“Mandatory lawn water restrictions are now necessary to maintain proper water pressure to ensure public fire safety and adequate water supplies for all our customers throughout the summer,” Wintz noted. “Drought conditions and high water usage are causing reservoir levels to fall quickly and are putting stress on the distribution system leading to costly main breaks.

“Batesville Water and Gas Utility realizes mandatory water use restrictions may create concern among some customers, but the following water use restrictions are absolutely necessary for the safety of our community.  We must manage our reservoirs and other water resources with the assumption that the current drought conditions could last all summer,” he added.

Restrictions:

Lawn sprinkling of any kind including recreation areas, until further notice.

 Exception:

Vegetable gardens and flowers may be watered by container or hand-held hose equipped with a shut-off nozzle. It is also permissible to water trees and shrubs.

Violations:

Each customer shall be responsible for compliance with the ban.

The customer with service at that address shall be liable for violations that occur on such premises.  Penalties for failure to comply with the Water Lawn Sprinkling Ban include a verbal warning followed by an automatic shut-off of water to the residence or business.

Timing:

The Mandatory Water Usage Restrictions will be effective beginning at noon on July 24 and will remain in effect until further notice.  When sufficient rainfall has been received, cancellation of the ban will be communicated via the local media and the Nixle alert system.

 For more information, contact Steve Wintz at 934-3811 or by e-mail at swintz@batesvilleindiana.us.