# This is how bad our drought is



## Guest (Apr 18, 2014)

The town I'm in and a neighboring town are sharing a well. They are estimating it will be completely dry as early as September.

Town officials are having meetings trying to figure out what to do.

We need rain! :rainprf:


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

well one thing i would do if i lived in your area if i had the money is get a 1500gal or more tank to catch water in when the next rain comes.

it takes a long time for water to trickle down to recharge wells.this will only get worse in my mind.if i was there i would have every spout ready to catch water when it comes.


one town in arizona or new mexico on the news their well went dry a good while back and the stores had portapottys on street.


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

elkhound said:


> well one thing i would do if i lived in your area if i had the money is get a 1500gal or more tank to catch water in when the next rain comes.
> 
> it takes a long time for water to trickle down to recharge wells.this will only get worse in my mind.if i was there i would have every spout ready to catch water when it comes.
> 
> ...


There was one in NM. We have the 1500 gallon tank but didn't wait for that mysterious rain you talk of. I just filled it when we got the tank where we wanted it. I'd like to get another tank but they are expensive.


----------



## K.B. (Sep 7, 2012)

This stuff is great:
http://www.globalplasticsheeting.com/Portals/32796/docs/NDF 24(2).pdf

For the price of a 1500 gal tank you can probably get a liner that will hold 15000+ gal along with some Bobcat or backhoe time.


----------



## ne prairiemama (Jan 30, 2010)

Wow!  Praying you get some rain!! You have friends up North if need be!


----------



## Roadking (Oct 8, 2009)

Wow! Sorry to hear that.
We made a development of town homes and twins (double in some other areas) in and area with poor water supply.
We put in three wells...and made a water company that out produced and under cost the township water supply. Needless to say, the township bought it off us when we finished the development.
We actually out produced the local and three surrounding townships...but we went 1000+ feet deep.
Hope you get your rain soon.

Matt


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

i hope people have been digging out dry ponds ,making them larger,constructing new and bigger dams and putting in swales.swales slowing that water down will get it put down in your soil before leaving your property.i understand this takes money but all we can do is what we can and hope its enough.


----------



## where I want to (Oct 28, 2008)

I had no idea it was that bad where you are. http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Water/Water.htm#FogHarvesting. Is a site I was looking at for ideas on water earlier this year.
We are now at 52% of average which is low but passable. However that is the end for the year for us normally.

Hoping some gets to you soon.


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

.....


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

take a look at this thread and look at post #5 and their results from a recent rain.


http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/ge...513513-rain-water-collection.html#post7050716


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

At this point, it will take at least 5, maybe more, consecutive wet years for TX, OK, NM and AZ to approach the end of the drought...


----------



## Rick (May 10, 2002)

ladycat said:


> The town I'm in and a neighboring town are sharing a well. They are estimating it will be completely dry as early as September.
> 
> Town officials are having meetings trying to figure out what to do.
> 
> We need rain! :rainprf:


Sounds like the "Drip" is about to hit the "Pan".

Have the towns officials encouraged folk to start humanure - sawdust toilets where it is feasible, practical and tolerable?

Toilet Flushing requires an average of 18.5 gallons of water per day.

Do they allow the use of grey water?


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

We're getting rain!!!!:nanner::nanner: me and the kid were just out playing in it. It's the first for the year here. Mud puddles to jump in! Well as much as sand can make mud.


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

Rick said:


> Sounds like the "Drip" is about to hit the "Pan".
> 
> Have the towns officials encouraged folk to start humanure - sawdust toilets where it is feasible, practical and tolerable?
> 
> ...


This is about way more than toilet flushes using water. 12 or 18 inches of rain instead of 20 or 30 for ten years or so with the population growth these states are having is pumping aquifers dry. They won't recharge for years. This prolonged drought keeps reservoirs from refilling, and places like Dallas/Ft. Worth won't take the steps necessary for responsible use of the water in them. Not that there is much... And the number of people determined to move into rural subdivisions or onto 5 acre lots cut from larger tracts of farm and ranch land just deplete the aquifers faster when wells are drilled. These drier areas were never meant to carry the populations that are there now. Old Comanche stories tell of a 40 year drought in the late 1400's. No flushes then, and the game animals and people had to move on to places with water...


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

It rained off and on all day. Don't think we got a lot, much less than an inch but I'll take it. In the past 3 years we've had less than 10 inches total. We're worried about our well. Between the power plant and all the farms-in the middle of the desert- water levels are dropping. The Rio grand has been empty more often than not in our area. Mexico is hollering about "their share" but what can you do when it's just not there?


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

It is hard to conserve what doesn't fall, isn't it...


----------



## Rick (May 10, 2002)

I didn't mean that it would replenish - just that the people are already there, and that there are measures that can save water. 

I imagine the price should be increased 10 or 20 fold, and it hurts my lips for words like that to leave them.

It takes 2 gallons or less to scrub ones body and rinse clean.

Vehicles do not need a bath anywhere near as often as they get them.

There are many more ways to save water.


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

Rick said:


> I didn't mean that it would replenish - just that the people are already there, and that there are measures that can save water.
> 
> I imagine the price should be increased 10 or 20 fold, and it hurts my lips for words like that to leave them.
> 
> ...




My truck hasn't had a bath in several years. Well, until yesterday's rain. I had a sponge out and was scrubbing the worst off till the rain stopped.


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

I wasn't slighting ideas to save water. You would have to truck TONS of sawdust into the drought zone for composting toilets, tho. The problem remains... Too many people in areas that can,t sustain the growth. Drought cycles are normal. When pastures and tanks (ponds) dry up, you reduce stock numbers as needed to ride them out. People are the larger problem, not drought. Eventually, a wet cycle will come, soil profiles will fill, aquifers recharge. Pavement and people prevent the cycles from working as they were meant to do...


----------



## Belfrybat (Feb 21, 2003)

We've been on water restrictions here for the past 3-1/2 years. Outdoor watering only once a week in town, no outdoor watering for commercial use, filling swimming pools are allowed at a set time in the spring and only for one week, etc. If the lake drops much lower, the restrictions will get worse. The problem is our water supply comes from a large lake and in the summer it loses more water to evaporation than to usage. Nothing can be done about that. 
If I didn't have a water catchment system I'd be in a world of hurt. I'm of a mind that the county should promote water catchment, and maybe have a program to supply tanks and guttering at a reduced cost. We had 3/10th an inch of rain yesterday, which didn't impact the lake at all, but my system caught just under 300 gallons. That's enough to water my garden for 2 - 3 weeks.


----------



## Trixters_muse (Jan 29, 2008)

I wish I could send you some of our rain, my back yard is like a marsh, my two small ponds keep flooding and my garden is eroding. As soon as the ground starts to drain and dry it rains again.

Hope you get more rain soon.


----------



## Ruby (May 10, 2002)

If the drought continues many more years all of Texas will look like West Texas.


----------



## Andy Nonymous (Aug 20, 2005)

I feel for all those with a lack of water, and wish I could send some from here.

Last year, the onions and garlic planted here on 'high ground', still drowned. This year, we're putting them in raised beds. Most of the hay field was so wet for so long, that our first cutting got missed altogether except on a 1 acre hilltop, but that got rained on before it got dry, and brush hogging the rest to hope for a decent second cutting left 2-6" tractor ruts (from a 2500# tractor) in fields that have been pasture sod for over 30 years.

This past winter left us plenty of snow, and after a long awaited spring warm-up, we got a week of wet (including 2 days of rain, 3 frosts and some snow). This past week we got 2 days of partly cloudy, 4 days of sunshine, highs in the 60's and good breezes, and we still have places in the pasture too wet and soft to even walk on. Last night and today is rain again - maybe not much, but still enough to set back the dry-out by another 3-4 days.

In another thread, someone was thinking about digging a root cellar. Here, if I start digging a hole here before August (if it doesn't rain all summer), it's a called a "well".

Oh, I dearly wish I could send you dry folks even half of the water we're blessed with.


----------



## whiterock (Mar 26, 2003)

Ruby said:


> If the drought continues many more years all of Texas will look like West Texas.


 
Thought about hitting Like, but can't bring myself too. I am about to believe it though.


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

Sheep and goat country seems to be moving east, all right...


----------



## Spinner (Jul 19, 2003)

I hope you are getting some of this rain. I'm a couple hours east of you and thankfully it's been pretty wet the past couple weeks. My grass has actually grown so tall it needs mowed, only mowed twice last year, hope to do a LOT of mowing this year.


----------



## Buffy in Dallas (May 10, 2002)

ladycat said:


> The town I'm in and a neighboring town are sharing a well. They are estimating it will be completely dry as early as September.
> 
> Town officials are having meetings trying to figure out what to do.
> 
> We need rain! :rainprf:


What County are you in? I have a place up in Fannin County and my oldest daughter is near Tyler. I haven't heard recently what the drought conditions are but I know my pond is nowhere near full. It usually is by spring.


----------



## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

We had NO winter rains except a brief sprinkle now and again. We had 1/2 inch once this spring. We are already in moderate drought and headed deeper as the temps soar.


----------



## Guest (Apr 26, 2014)

Buffy in Dallas said:


> What County are you in? I have a place up in Fannin County and my oldest daughter is near Tyler. I haven't heard recently what the drought conditions are but I know my pond is nowhere near full. It usually is by spring.


 Clay.

We're in stage 4 restrictions, and they're about to go to stage 5. Our drought is very profound. 

The lakes in the area are almost down to 25% of normal capacity. 

The stock ponds are bone dry. Not that it matters, as all the cattle have been sold off.


----------



## Aintlifegrand (Jun 3, 2005)

ladycat said:


> Clay.
> 
> We're in stage 4 restrictions, and they're about to go to stage 5. Our drought is very profound.
> 
> ...


I'm sorry for the hard times all those in drought are experiencing...not sure what suggestions I can give so I will just pray that yall get some rain


----------



## Guest (Apr 26, 2014)

OMG what they said on the news tonight...

The experts crunched all the data, and they said Wichita Falls has "at least 24 months worth of water".

They were trying to soothe the public, and saying it's unlikely the drought will keep going that long.

But what if it does? Wichita Falls has 100K people. SAFB has another 50k. And then you've got all the small towns and communities in the area that get their water from Wichita Falls.

So we're talking maybe 200K people that could be out of water in 2 years. What then?


----------



## palm farmer (Jan 3, 2014)

[QUOTE Mexico is hollering about "their share" but what can you do when it's just not there?[/QUOTE]

they can go suck a buffalo chip, they withold their fair share more times than not down here, and built huge new reservoirs when they were not supposed to. a few years back our floodway was bank to bank because a hurricane flooded them while their reservoirs were at [eak capacity so in turn they dumped it all on us.....


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

ladycat said:


> OMG what they said on the news tonight...
> 
> The experts crunched all the data, and they said Wichita Falls has "at least 24 months worth of water".
> 
> ...


I hate to hear that. I used to live in Wichita Falls. Dad was stationed at SAFB several different times. Scariest time of my life. Tornado took out my elementary while we were all walking home. I actually miss that place.


----------



## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

ladycat said:


> OMG what they said on the news tonight...
> 
> The experts crunched all the data, and they said Wichita Falls has "at least 24 months worth of water".
> 
> ...


Then Wichita Falls will shrink back down to its pre-oil, pre-military size which was probably quite small.

Those people will probably move somewhere else.

But before that, you'll see the city try to save itself with federal grants and trucked in water.

There's at least 4 more years on this drought. It's only been 3 years so far and it always hits in 7 year cycles on a longer 30 year cycle. 

The local lake from which everyone draws their water (not me) is going dry as well. Expert on the radio said it will be 12 years of above average rainfall before it comes back up to normal level. Well fat chance of that happening.

So the county has responded by raising everyone's property taxes and giving the money to a private company who will drill new wells to provide the communities with water (and charge the people who paid for it in the first place.)


----------



## Texasdirtdigger (Jan 17, 2010)

We are on restriction, as well. I have already started saving my canning water, to recycle.
I understand 240ish counties in Texas have been deemed disaster area's , due to the drought.... our county is certainly one of them.

We have sold our cattle, also. First time in my life we have even considered something like that. But, what do you do.

Conserve, conserve, conserve!!


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

We're having a sand storm right now. There SHOULD Be a mountain chains 5 miles north and ten miles south of us. Cant see them though. Oops, sorry about the dirty window but I'm not going out in that mess to clean it. Sand traveling at 50mph HURTS!


----------



## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Yeah, I've been caught in a sandstorm west of Corpus some yrs back. Out in the flats trying to find a patient's home. At least I was in the car and not on foot. We were in a drought then too. Early 80s.


----------



## KrisD (May 26, 2011)

We've had 14" of rain in March alone and 21" since January 1st. PLEASE come take some. I can't get rid of the water. My rain barrels are over flowing, my pond has folded it's banks. Even the dock we use to cross the pond is completely under water. My yard is squishy with water and I'm worried as all get out about our leach field. Our animal pens are thick mud. 

I wish the powers at be could just truck the stuff to where it needs to go. Or instead of underground oil lines have water lines. At least that way if one breaks it won't pollute anything. 
How about we trade for 6 months every year?


----------



## Guest (Apr 27, 2014)

KrisD said:


> Or instead of underground oil lines have water lines. At least that way if one breaks it won't pollute anything.


 Sounds good to me.


----------



## where I want to (Oct 28, 2008)

KrisD said:


> We've had 14" of rain in March alone and 21" since January 1st. PLEASE come take some. I can't get rid of the water. My rain barrels are over flowing, my pond has folded it's banks. Even the dock we use to cross the pond is completely under water. My yard is squishy with water and I'm worried as all get out about our leach field. Our animal pens are thick mud.
> 
> I wish the powers at be could just truck the stuff to where it needs to go. Or instead of underground oil lines have water lines. At least that way if one breaks it won't pollute anything.
> How about we trade for 6 months every year?


I know what you mean but having had the begeebers scared out of me by having no rain from June of last year through March of this year, I can honestly say I prefer the excess wet. Of course, I don't live on a river and things have not slid. But not having drinking water for me and the animals ............. shudder.


----------



## KrisD (May 26, 2011)

A new leach field will set us back $20k which we don't have. Our property is beyond saturated. It definitely worries me. 
We laugh because my folks left here a few weeks ago to visit my brother in So Cal and it's raining there now. I joked they should pay us to visit drought stricken areas. Same thing when we went to Palm Springs - it rained. I want SUN! I want dry weather for a while. I want it warm! I am sick and tired of mud all the freaking time. Muddy dog feet, muddy kids boots, muddy shoes, muddy chickens and muddy goats. I can't even buy hay because the hay farmers fields are mud and the trucks get stuck. 
Not to mention I have to mow the stupid grass twice a week because it just won't stop. The grass never dries out and bogs the mower down. 
Ladycat I'm coming to live with you!


----------



## KrisD (May 26, 2011)

Oh and we went out to check on our back fence because we've had so much wind lately and because it's so wet many of the fence posts are floating and the others are super loose.


----------



## where I want to (Oct 28, 2008)

KrisD said:


> A new leach field will set us back $20k which we don't have. Our property is beyond saturated. It definitely worries me.
> We laugh because my folks left here a few weeks ago to visit my brother in So Cal and it's raining there now. I joked they should pay us to visit drought stricken areas. Same thing when we went to Palm Springs - it rained. I want SUN! I want dry weather for a while. I want it warm! I am sick and tired of mud all the freaking time. Muddy dog feet, muddy kids boots, muddy shoes, muddy chickens and muddy goats. I can't even buy hay because the hay farmers fields are mud and the trucks get stuck.
> Not to mention I have to mow the stupid grass twice a week because it just won't stop. The grass never dries out and bogs the mower down.
> Ladycat I'm coming to live with you!


Mostly septic systems do fine with just wet, even with saturated ground. I can hear the trickle of water into my septic tank at times in the winter. The county inspector laughed at me when I asked, saying "that's all?" I can't say don't worry because I don't know your system but I've never heard of it being a problem unless it's clogged with roots or debris from a failed system.
I have a friend who lives at the bottom of the hill along the creek. Her place actually floods, as in the creek rises, and covers her septic system from tank to mound to reserve and it all works fine as soon as it recedes and it dries. And that is in the rainy season here which is comparable to yours with certain areas here having the US record for rainfall.


----------



## Guest (Apr 27, 2014)

KrisD said:


> Ladycat I'm coming to live with you!


 Please do, I need someone who attracts rain!


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

ladycat said:


> Please do, I need someone who attracts rain!


Hey! I need rain too! You'll just have to share KridD.


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

Its still sandy out today but not nearly as bad as yesterday. You can almost see the mountains again.


----------



## GoldenCityMuse (Apr 15, 2009)

It's actually pretty nice here today.

Yesterday was a different story. Those gusts to 50MPH were pretty bad here as well. No rain here, sleet and snow flurries.

And it is dry here in NM as well. ~8% humidity and 30-40MPH winds are not helping. 

Overall though, I prefer the drought over tornadoes any time. I can compenstae fairly easily for drought. Those poor folk in Arkansas. What utter destruction.


----------



## GoldenCityMuse (Apr 15, 2009)

Oh, and it was Magdalena, NM that had their well run dry. I actually drive thru there now & then. Lot of places have gutters and 200 gal tanks now.

In Fact, just ran across a new story about them
http://www.dchieftain.com/2014/04/17/water-supply-still-a-concern


----------



## Guest (Apr 28, 2014)

GoldenCityMuse said:


> Oh, and it was Magdalena, NM that had their well run dry. I actually drive thru there now & then. Lot of places have gutters and 200 gal tanks now.
> 
> In Fact, just ran across a new story about them
> http://www.dchieftain.com/2014/04/17/water-supply-still-a-concern


 I found a story from last summer when the situation was current:
http://www.koat.com/news/new-mexico/nm-town-runs-out-of-water/20444262


----------



## Guest (May 7, 2014)

We made the national news!

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/north-texas-town-goes-to-extremes-for-fresh-water-during-drought/


----------



## JillyG (Jan 6, 2014)

I fear it will only get worse
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money...ceres-report-fracking-water-supplies/5230583/


fracking â has required almost 100 billion gallons of water to drill more than 39,000 oil and shale gas wells in the U.S. since 2011,


----------



## whiterock (Mar 26, 2003)

ladycat, i'm gettin some relief today, you?


----------



## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

Our failure to use water sustainably and our uncontrolled population growth is going to cause a LOT of problems very soon.

Cities in drought areas should be looking very hard at water conservation techniques including sawdust or composting toilets, mandatory arid landscaping, tax rebates for water efficient appliances, etc. The technology is readily available but the political will and public support is lagging far behind it will ultimately cause more "pain" than if the technology was adopted now. We see that with too many things when politicians are involved.


----------



## Marthas_minis (Jan 28, 2014)

We are in Central Texas about an hour east of Austin. We were supposed to get lots and lots of glorious rain this week. We got 1/4". I have huge cracks in my yard and my stock tank is down 4-5' just since Jan. 

Sustainability is the way to go. I am solarizing my front lawn this summer and turning it into mixture of low water plants and vegetables. Everything watered with drip system off rain collection then my well. But there is a limit to that as well. 

I don't know what else we can do. LCRA is now coming in to drill 5 or 6 new water wells nearby (in the same aquifer we're in) that they apparently either somehow bypassed community vote or kept it quiet to keep the community from showing up en mass, voting against it.


----------



## Guest (May 9, 2014)

whiterock said:


> ladycat, i'm gettin some relief today, you?


 Yes, we got some rain.


----------



## whiterock (Mar 26, 2003)

I got 2.5 inches yesterday. 11 miles east of me got 4.2. 30 miles north at the big airport .5 . Saw one lake got a foot of water added, now it is only 7 ft low.


----------



## terri9630 (Mar 12, 2012)

I saw on the news yesterday that Argentina is going to start rationing water because of drought. They were saying people would go up to 3 days a week without water. I'll see if I can find a link somewhere.


It might just be political but either way the people are not getting water.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2014/may/07/water-rationing-begins-in-venezuela-amid-drought/


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

Either way, dry is dry... You can't save what doesn't fall. And the day folks in the D/FW metromess go along with composting toilets and gravel front yards instead of trees and grass... Yeah, good luck with that. Most of those who moved into the area since the 70's came from areas far north and east of Texas where it rains much more... Like moving into Sonoran desert and wanting a ryegrass lawn all year...


----------



## whiterock (Mar 26, 2003)

arcticow said:


> Either way, dry is dry... You can't save what doesn't fall. And the day folks in the D/FW metromess go along with composting toilets and gravel front yards instead of trees and grass... Yeah, good luck with that. Most of those who moved into the area since the 70's came from areas far north and east of Texas where it rains much more... Like moving into Sonoran desert and wanting a ryegrass lawn all year...


 
AMEN!!:cowboy::cowboy::cowboy::cowboy:


----------



## morgaineotm (Apr 5, 2010)

talking about some El Nino this year which means maybe some water into the southwest. Am ponying up the big $$$ for water butts. Have the roof area, but it goes in all kinds of directions, so getting several. Check out Poly mart .com their tanks are reasonable, but shipping expensive. still seem to be about the cheapest out there


----------



## where I want to (Oct 28, 2008)

It's definitely strange this year. We had no water for so many months I was really worried. Now we are having rain fairly regularly, which is also odd at this time of year.

I hope you get some soon. Lack of water is not a concern here normally but I have not yet recovered from my earlier scare and now recognize what the lack of appropriate rain can mean. I'll do my "rain go away" dance on my front porch this morning and try to send some in your direction.


----------



## Guest (May 16, 2014)

The bad news is, as of today, we're in stage 5 drought restrictions due to the lakes dropping to a combined total of 25% of normal levels.

The good news is, El Nino is brewing, giving us the promise of LOTS of rain in this area.

The bad news is, El Nino is brewing, threatening parts of the country with devastating floods.


----------



## whiterock (Mar 26, 2003)

yes ma'am , the pendulum will swing, sooner or later. I got about 4.75 inches total out of the rain last week, still need more though. Daddy used to say if you stick to this blackland when its dry, it'll stick to you when its wet.
ED


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

SO glad y'all got some rain, maybe some soaked in instead of being runoff...


----------



## Marthas_minis (Jan 28, 2014)

ladycat said:


> The good news is, El Nino is brewing, giving us the promise of LOTS of rain in this area.
> 
> The bad news is, El Nino is brewing, threatening parts of the country with devastating floods.



"They" have been saying El NiÃ±o was going to give us rain for the past 2 years. I haven't seen it yet so not holding my breath! It'll rain when it rains and I'll be dancing in it.


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

Till the water gets too deep...


----------



## Flopsy (Apr 1, 2014)

Marthas_minis said:


> We are in Central Texas about an hour east of Austin. We were supposed to get lots and lots of glorious rain this week. We got 1/4". I have huge cracks in my yard and my stock tank is down 4-5' just since Jan.
> 
> Sustainability is the way to go. I am solarizing my front lawn this summer and turning it into mixture of low water plants and vegetables. Everything watered with drip system off rain collection then my well. But there is a limit to that as well.
> 
> I don't know what else we can do. LCRA is now coming in to drill 5 or 6 new water wells nearby (in the same aquifer we're in) that they apparently either somehow bypassed community vote or kept it quiet to keep the community from showing up en mass, voting against it.



I asked my FIL about how the LCRA got approval, he said they went to the board an got approval thus bypassing the people. Now which board, I don't know but that's what he said. I remembered hearing something about LCRA and wanting more water last summer in the Rockdale Reporter.


----------



## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Pretty sure we are on that same aquifer. I'm just SW of Rockdale.


----------

