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Woodcliff Lake NJ, Bergen resident Orlando Miquel asked how lowing water levels at the Woodcliff Lake Reservoir might affect residents during the drought situation, “And this is precisely why Veolia can’t agree with Westwood’s persistent request to lower the water level of the Woodcliff Lake Reservoir. Have you seen the reservoir? Imagine if we had started this drought with a lower elevation.”
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, just in time for spring La Niña is over , meteorologists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have confirmed.
Facts are important. This problem is wholly and entirely a mismanagement issue by the village and RW Water. Rainfall and water supplies are not impacting this issue. This is a poor infrastructure, lack of planning, and foolish government decisions. Real leaders would solve the issues. From the US site
Heavy rainfall caused widespread flooding: Record precipitation was observed in parts of the Northwest, Northeast, Southern Plains and Mid-Atlantic. North Carolina had its wettest April on record. Rains caused widespread flooding in the Mid-Mississippi River Valley and contributed to numerous landslides in the West.
Drought shrunk to lowest extent since 2000: On May 2, 5 percent of the contiguous U.S. was in drought. This was the smallest drought footprint since the Drought Monitor began in 2000. Despite improvement in many areas, drought worsened in the Southwest and across parts of the Southeast where several large wildfires burned in Florida and southern Georgia.
file photo by Boyd Loving
By Len Melisurgo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on April 08, 2017 at 7:45 AM
Just a few months ago, New Jersey was struggling with its worst drought conditions in more than a decade.
Now, thanks to a persistent weather pattern that brought more snow than usual in March and a series of drenching rain storms the past two weeks, the Garden State’s drought woes are steadily washing away.
February 19, 2017 at 3:00 AM
Smart companies (and states) make long-range plans based on the most accurate data available. But New Jersey’s real estate and home-building industries, the state’s water utilities and, indeed, any N.J. company that depends on a reliable water supply can’t do that right now. The Statewide Water Supply Plan — a document that details where the water for New Jersey’s future is and is not — has not been updated since 1996, despite a state statute requiring that an updated report be provided every five years.
Certainly, the Department of Environmental Protection has been working on an update. But, as Rutgers professor and former DEP official Daniel J. Van Abs said in a Feb. 7 column for NJSpotlight, a new draft plan was “last seen” in 2012, when it was presented to the Water Supply Advisory Council — a panel of water company officials, academic scientists and various nonprofits that advises the DEP on water issues. Since then, nothing has happened.
The DEP says it is still collecting data, but Van Abs and others believe Gov. Chris Christie is sitting on the report because the news is not likely to be good. Their theory is that an updated report could stymie development in the state, and the Christie administration does not want to be bound by it.
By Ridgewood Water’s own definitions, our current restrictions are Stage III, not IV.
Ridgewood Water website (https://water.ridgewoodnj.net/) says:
Current Water Restrictions: STAGE IV.
Irrigation using a hand-held hose only is limited to Tuesdays and Saturdays for odd numbered addresses and Wednesdays and Sundays for even numbered addresses.
Ridgewood Water’s website also says (click on Water Restrictions, next-to-last bullet point under Resources):
Stage I (Moderate) – Mandatory restriction of irrigation to Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays for properties with odd-numbered addresses and Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays for properties with even-numbered addresses. Irrigation using a hand-held hose shall be allowed at any time. No irrigation shall be allowed on Mondays except for the use of a hand held hose.
Stage II (Severe) – Mandatory restriction of irrigation to Tuesdays and Saturdays for properties with odd-numbered addresses and Wednesdays and Sundays for properties with even-numbered addresses. No irrigation shall be allowed on Mondays, Thursdays, or Fridays except for the use of a hand held hose. Irrigation using a hand held hose shall be allowed at any time.
Stage III (Pending/Critical) – Mandatory restriction of irrigation to the use of a hand held hose on Tuesdays and Saturdays for properties with odd-numbered addresses and Wednesdays and Sundays for properties with even-numbered addresses. No irrigation of any kind shall be allowed on Mondays, Thursdays, or Fridays.
Stage IV (Critical) – Irrigation is prohibited at any time. Exceptions for irrigation using a hand held hose may be allowed under conditions prescribed by the Village Manager of the Village of Ridgewood.
SEPTEMBER 9, 2015, 7:17 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2015, 7:19 PM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
RIDGEWOOD — Efforts to conserve water supplies are paying off, thanks to last week’s imposition of stringent irrigation restrictions and strict enforcement of those limits, village officials say.
Ridgewood’s village manager, Roberta Sonenfeld, said Wednesday that the measures — including having firefighters cut off water service to 15 homes this past weekend — have been working.
On Saturday, use dipped by 1 million gallons systemwide from the August daily average, Sonenfeld said. On Sunday and Tuesday, water usage was down by 2 million gallons. It dropped by nearly 3 million gallons on Labor Day, the village manager said.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/efforts-to-conserve-water-are-paying-off-in-ridgewood-1.1406245
1-Why doesn’t the Village post a list of repeat offenders on their website. That’ll stop the problem.
2-My friend in Florida uses “gray water” for her plants. She said she was actually doing the town a favor by watering
3-We should get the RBA to artificially turf on lawns. Problem solved!
4-Empty the Graydon Pool water into the water reserve tanks might help.
5-we had a good amount of snow this past winter, did we store it?
Message from the Village Manager Regarding Stage 4 Enforcement
I have received questions and concerns from several residents regarding the enforcement of Stage 4 restriction. There are ordinances that authorize specific staff in the Village to have the ability to enforce…..I think I mentioned in my E-Notice on Friday that based on Stage 4 and its seriousness, I authorized more staff members to have this capacity. I am hoping that the enhanced enforcement that we had this weekend and the coming days will be more effective than during Stage 2 restrictions. The only way a summons can be written is if the person sees the watering – unfortunately wetness around the area and having a green lawn do not cut it for writing a summons….so we have to be there at the right time. We now have a person dedicated to identifying violators between 4AM through 7AM – a time period that I do not think we were covering adequately…… we also have the RPD out around this time. Our Fire Department was making rounds over the weekend and actually shutting off the water in homes where automated sprinklers were in use if no one was home to shut the water off themselves. The Fire Department will also begin to issue summonses.
It is a bit early to share this news but it does seem to appear that the restrictions are having some impact. On average in August we used 10.2 million gallons per day….yesterday we used 7.2 million. Board of Ed properties as well as Village properties are all in compliance with the restrictions.
From a communications perspective, our first robo call early Friday afternoon was sent to 20,000 phones with 11,000 actually getting it…..we then did a second call in the evening. We do need to extend that list and the team is working on this. Our e-notice went out to about 4,000 email addresses – we have been emphasizing sign up. We also have posted the restrictions on the Village Facebook site, both Village websites (Ridgewood and Ridgewood Water) as well as both tv channels – but these are pull not push means of communicating. We also have posted the restrictions on the movable electronic sign on the west side. I am mentioning this because I think that there is no excuse for anyone not knowing that we are in Stage 4.
Best regards,
SEPTEMBER 4, 2015, 5:41 PM LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2015, 5:58 PM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Sprinklers will be silenced around the village as dry weather has forced Ridgewood Water to initiate severe restrictions on irrigation.
On Friday, residents in Glen Rock, Midland Park, and Ridgewood learned they could face stiff fines should they opt to use anything other than a handheld hose with a spray nozzle to water their lawns.
Ridgewood Water has imposed its most oppressive restrictions, deeming the situation “critical.”
Related: Hot, dry weather depleting North Jersey drinking water supply
Use of these spray nozzles will be restricted to just two days a week; those with odd numbered addresses can water on Tuesdays and Saturdays with even numbered homes able to irrigate Wednesdays and Sundays.
No irrigation is permitted on Mondays, Thursdays or Fridays until further notice.
According to Ridgewood officials, reserves need to be maintained for household use and for firefighters who’ll need water and enough pressure to fight potential fires.