WASHINGTON -
The ongoing drought is very much on everyone's minds, and on Wednesday it was the topic of a United States House of Representatives committee hearing.
Mayor Greg Ballard (R-Indianapolis) told lawmakers that the 2012 drought is "one of historical proportions" that has been "compounded by extreme temperatures."
The mayor joined national experts on climatology to discuss the impact of the drought and the National Integrated Drought Information System, which cities and government rely on for information about drought forecasting.
Ballard said the city used the drought monitor system to activate its extreme heat plan, and that Citizens Water used the weekly drought status to determine when water conservation efforts were necessary.
The mayor said by late June, Citizens Water was delivering record amounts of water to customers, and the utility determined that up to 40 percent was for lawn irrigation.
A July 6th request that residents cut back only led to a drop in 20 million gallons pumped per day, Ballard said. It was only when the watering ban became mandatory that usage dropped more significantly, by around 58 million gallons per day.
The mayor says the city does not have complete information on the impact of the drought, although he did say that many businesses have voiced concern over water usage restrictions. Ballard said these small businesses have been negatively impacted, and that jobs have "definitely" been affected.
Ballard called it an "incredible burden" on businesses and homeowners and that the restrictions were "unfortunate but necessary."
Scientists also testified at the hearing, and the focus was on a drought early warning system and better ways of tracking and measuring the effects of drought.
Some areas have already implemented a drought early warning system, including in Colorado and California.
One city in Alabama city was brought up as an example of how planning ahead for the drought helped the city minimize the negative impact.
"The sooner Indianapolis knows about drought conditions, the sooner we can begin planning," Ballard said.
He also said the accuracy of any drought prediction would have to be quite high before it resulted in earlier implementation.
Farmers aren't the only ones feeling the impact of the drought.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and WTHR. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
