8.2.07

M.U.D. hits two high-water marks in July
by Nancy Gaarder, Omaha World-Herald
 
Dry weather and thirsty lawns helped push Metropolitan Utilities District to two records for water use in July.
 
The utility set a record for the most water used in any month – 5,494 million gallons, a 4 percent increase over the previous record, set in July 2006.
 
The utility also set a record for the amount of water being pumped at any one time. On the morning of July 18, customers turned on their sprinklers, setting hourly records that peaked at 14.74 million gallons between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. The previous record, set in 2006, was 14.46 million gallons.
 
July saw a couple of timely rains that kept water use from rising even more. And though June had been the driest on record for the Omaha area, that month didn’t set a record for water use, because the soil was still moist from the metro area’s wettest January-May on record.
 
A growing customer base is a major contributor to M.U.D.’s new records. M.U.D. says per-customer water use is actually down.
 
Spokeswoman Mari Matulka said M.U.D. is on pace to average annual use of 108,000 gallons per residential customer. Previously, M.U.D. customers had consistently averaged 110,000 gallons per year, she said.
 
Scott Keep, a senior vice-president at M.U.D., said the high demand stressed the utility’s equipment, but crews were able to keep the system running and meet the demands.
 
The City of Papillion, which is not on M.U.D.’s system, has its customers on curtailment.
 
Statewide, eight communities are on mandatory water restrictions and nine have asked for voluntary curtailment, according to the Nebraska Health and Human Services.

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