|
Posted: July 14, 2005
Crediting the community for its support, Public Works Director Jim Foster
has confirmed the City of Plano has lifted emergency restrictions banning
outdoor water use, implemented July 13. “The ability to get back to normal
so quickly can be credited to the citizens’ willingness to be cooperative
with their water restrictions. We appreciate their support,” he advised this
morning.
An early morning break in a pipeline weld plate at the North Texas Municipal
Water District Wylie plant Wednesday resulted in disruption of water service
to multiple Collin and Denton county cities, including Plano. An estimated
600,000 residents were affected by the break to the 78-inch water supply
line.
The disruption in service did not affect the water quality of our City,
which retains its “Superior” water quality rating. Plano’s water remains
safe to drink and enjoy.
A regional focus on water conservation and drought contingency planning led
to the majority of cities immediately activating contingency plans banning
outdoor watering. Some cities, such as McKinney, closed restaurants, county
offices and businesses, while other cities, such as Allen, Frisco, and Plano
banned outdoor watering, hoping existing water storage supplies would
outlast pipeline repair time.
A limited amount of water continued to flow from the Water District, which
supplies water to approximately 95 North Texas utility districts, cities and
towns.
Rapid growth in the North Texas area nearly left some cities “high and dry”
due to population growth overtaking water storage capacities. Effective
long-range planning, however, has enabled Plano to remain on top of its
growth for a number of years, with water infrastructure maintenance and
construction a priority in ensuring our water supply keeps up with demand.
Although the outdoor watering ban has been lifted, the City’s water storage
facilities are still in process of being replenished. Conserving water,
especially over the next several days, will greatly aid the system’s
“recharge.”
Plano currently maintains a water infrastructure of 11 elevated water towers
and 13 ground storage water tanks for a total water storage capacity of 88
million gallons. Five pumping stations provide Plano with a 258-million
gallon daily water pumping capacity.
|
|