St. Paul Regional Water Services (SPRWS) is requiring residents of the city and many surrounding suburbs to comply with outdoor watering restrictions due to worsening drought conditions.
St. Paul to enforce outdoor watering restrictions amid worsening drought
Residents must follow even-odd address rules
August 17, 2021 at 8:35PM
Effective immediately, customers with odd-numbered addresses may only water their lawns on odd-numbered days of the month, while those with even-numbered addresses may do the opposite. Outdoor watering can only take place before noon or after 6 p.m. to minimize evaporation.
Restrictions will be enforced starting Friday in St. Paul, Arden Hills, Falcon Heights, Lauderdale, Lilydale, Little Canada, Maplewood, Mendota, Mendota Heights, Roseville and West St. Paul.
Those who do not comply will receive an educational notice followed by a written warning. Residents will be fined $50 for a third violation and $100 for a fourth. Additional violations will earn $150 fines and customers' water will be shut off until they pay.
Exceptions will be made for commercial uses of outdoor watering, including nurseries and community gardens, and new sod or seed. Residents can also water trees with a drip hose or bucket as needed.
St. Paul has been encouraging residents to limit outdoor watering since late July, something the city hasn't done since the historically dry summer of 1988.
SPRWS announced it would make the watering rules mandatory after the state Department of Natural Resources moved the regional provider to a restrictive drought phase Tuesday, according to a news release. That new designation happened because the Mississippi River flows near Anoka dropped to 1,500 cubic feet per second or less for five consecutive days.
About three-quarters of Minnesota is experiencing severe drought, and 42% of the state is experiencing extreme drought as of Aug. 10, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Drought Monitor.
The St. Paul area needs at least 5 to 8 inches of rain over a month "to significantly alleviate current conditions," the SPRWS release said.
Katie Galioto • 612-673-4478
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