Parts of the metro-east in ‘severe drought.’ What should you do to conserve water?

A climatologist at the University of Illinois recommends metro-east residents conserve water as much of the metro east region experiences severe drought.

Portions of metro-east counties St. Clair, Monroe, Clinton, Washington and Randolph reached the “severe drought” range this week, according to the latest update from the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Most of the metro-east has a deficit of about 4 to 10 inches compared to normal rainfall, Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford said. The highest deficits are in Monroe and Calhoun counties.

Severe drought typically hurts agriculture and leads to dormant lawns, and outdoor burn bans are often implemented, the U.S. Drought Monitor reports. Additionally, water levels may be low in rivers, lakes, ponds and wells.

Even moderate drought conditions can lead to ecological or agricultural stress, Ford said, and the U.S. Drought Monitor chart says firework bans are usually implemented at this stage.

Here’s what to know about drought effects in southwestern Illinois.

How can you help conserve water in the metro-east?

Though water restrictions haven’t been formally enacted, Ford recommended residents take action to help mitigate the drought effects.

“We should be conserving water for sure, even if we’re not asked to do so by our towns and villages,” Ford said.

He says residents should limit watering their grass, and try to water before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. to minimize the loss of moisture through evaporation. It’s more beneficial to water deeply and infrequently than it is to water lightly daily, Ford said, so consider watering once or twice each week.

Grass will go dormant as a form of defense against drought, but trees, especially young or immature ones, may not come back. It’s important to keep an eye out for signs of stress on young trees, Ford said.

What burn bans and water restrictions are in place in the metro-east

Terry Mackin, director of communications for Illinois American Water Company in Belleville, said Thursday afternoon, “There are no water restrictions or conservation measures in place by Illinois American Water due to weather or drought.”

Mackin explained at what point the company possibly would implement such restrictions.

“Our focus is that all customers have reliable water service and high quality water,” he said in an email. “If we would reach a situation in which customer service or community fire protection was compromised, we might ask our customers to reduce water usage or conserve water temporarily.”

Herb Simmons, director of St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency, also said the county has not implemented water restrictions at this time. With the Fourth of July around the corner, however, the county is weighing a possible burn ban, he said.

“The only thing we talked about this morning, depending on how much rain we get from the thunderstorms being forecast, is a possible burn ban,” Simmons said Thursday afternoon. “The fire department said they’ve been seeing a lot of brush fires. We have not decided (on a burn ban) yet and will wait for 24-48 hours. But we are keeping an eye on it. With the 4th of July coming up, it’s starting to raise the eyebrows.”

Other nearby counties, including Clinton, Monroe, Randolph and Washington, have implemented burn bans until further notice. Burn also bans have been enacted in southern Illinois counties Franklin and Jefferson, WISL reported Tuesday.

Monroe County Emergency Management Agency said due to extremely dry conditions, any open burning constitutes a danger to life and properties. The fire ban includes the following:

• No outdoor burning of any brush piles, leaves, branches, wood, trash, etc.

• No personal Fireworks of any sort. No shooting of personal fireworks.

• No Sky Lanterns are allowed to be ignited and released.

• No fires are allowed except for Fire pits that have a safety containment fire ring AND screen/protective top for fire ring. All fire rings with screen/protective tops MUST be always supervised. Fire rings must be extinguished when unsupervised.

Municipalities and/or organizations that already have approved firework display permits are allowed to continue with displays/shows with fire department presence on site during the event, it said.

Even if your locality has not enacted a burn ban at this time, Ford advised residents to take caution when burning, avoid burning frivolously.

There is the hope drought conditions may be relieved to some degree soon, Ford said.

“The forecast is looking a bit more optimistic for rain over the next few days. Seven-day forecasts show totals of over an inch for much of the metro-east area, now there may be some places that get a little bit more than that, there may be places that get a little less than that, but that is a good sign,” Ford said.

The two-week outlook shows high chances of above normal precipitation in southwestern Illinois, Ford added.

“We have a good chance of at least improving conditions a little bit, or maybe stopping the slide, so that’s really good news,” Ford said. “Let’s just hope it actually comes to fruition, but it at least is an optimistic outlook. It won’t stop the drought entirely, we won’t not have drought in places because it does take a little while to climb out of it but at least it’s a start.”