The City of Grand Forks is asking residents to limit their outdoor water usage, specifically watering of lawns as part of Phase 1 of the City’s Drought Management and Demand Reduction Plan.
Starting Friday, July 16, 2021, residents are asked to limit the watering of their lawns to between 4 am – 11 am, two days a week. Watering in the early morning hours helps minimize evaporation due to cooler temperatures and lighter winds.
On a monthly basis, the city monitors stream flows in our two water sources. The Red River and the Red Lake River. In May the stream flows in the Red Lake River were 543 Cubic Feet per Second (CFS). In late June, that number had dropped to 266 CFS. The Red River flowed at 1920 CFS in May but in June that number dropped to 824 CFS.
This is still plenty of streamflow to maintain our water needs within the City of Grand Forks. We are also seeing an increase in water usage at the plant as well.
On average, the Grand Forks Regional Water Treatment plant treats 12 million gallons a day in the peak summer months. Currently, the plant is treating 14-16 million gallons per day. The water treatment plant can treat up to 20 million gallons per day.
With the decreased streamflow, the increased water usage, and a dry and hot forecast, the city felt it was time to implement Phase 1 of our plan.
This is not mandatory. Residents are asked to voluntarily participate in limiting their outdoor water usage. The situation will continue to be monitored.
