Tampa Bay area water crisis

By Craig Pittman, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Monday, March 16, 2009

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Tampa Bay Water took the last available water out of its reservoir last week to slake the thirst of the 2 million residents in the region, but the rainy season won't start until June. Now the utility is looking to the Southwest Florida Water Management District to impose the toughest watering restrictions in history.

This is a crisis that's been a long time coming. Rainfall in 2006 and 2007 fell so far below normal that even last year's rainfall, which measured up to the low end of the normal range, couldn't make up the deficit. Area lakes and rivers are still far below normal — so low that Tampa Bay Water can't get any water out of the rivers anymore.

As a result, the utility expects to pump more than 100 million gallons a day from its 11 well fields in March, more than 140 million in April and peak at more than 160 million in May.

That's far above what it pumped 10 years ago, before spending millions of dollars on a desalination plant and reservoir to cut back on the environmental damage caused by overpumping.

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RAINFALL DISTRIBUTION

From February 2006 to January 2009, rainfall in most of the Tampa Bay region hit only 5 percent of the normal level (shown in red). So far, the rainfall this month is less than one-fifth of an inch, when normally it would be more than 5 inches.

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SURFACE WATER

Without rainfall, the region's lakes and rivers are drying up. That's particularly bad since the rivers help supply our drinking water.

BAY AREA LAKES

The lakes are nearly 2 feet below their normal level for this time of year.

HILLSBOROUGH RIVER

The Southwest Florida Water Management District says the river's flow has dropped so low that it's "critically abnormal." Last year it was just below normal.

ALAFIA RIVER

This river has only about 2 percent of its normal flow, according to the agency commonly known as Swiftmud.

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THE RESERVOIRS

HILLSBOROUGH RESERVOIR

This 1.6-billion gallon reservoir has provided water for the city of Tampa since the 1920s.

C.W. BILL YOUNG REGIONAL RESERVOIR

To investigate the cause of cracks in the walls, Tampa Bay Water officials drained it to only half-full -- then had to start using what was left for the water supply in September.

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AQUIFER LEVELS

The undergound supply dropped to nearly 2 feet below normal last week -- and Tampa Bay Water has yet to hit its expected peak for groundwater pumping from its 11 wellfields.

[Last modified: Mar 15, 2009 10:49 PM]

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