*Note to the utility: The specific content of this ordinance or resolution should be reviewed with the utility's general legal counsel and bond counsel if the utility has any indebtedness outstanding to insure its enforce ability.
(A) Declaration of Policy and Authority.
(1) The objective of this Drought Response Ordinance is to establish authority, policy and procedure by which the City of Dillon will take the proper actions to manage water demand during a drought-related shortage. The ordinance satisfies the requirements of the Drought Response Act of 2000 and has the goal of achieving the greatest public benefit from limited supplies of water needed for domestic water use, sanitation, and fire protection and of allocating water for other purposes in an equitable manner.
(2) This ordinance outlines the actions to be taken for the conservation of water supplied by the City of Dillon. These actions are directed both towards an overall reduction in water usage and the optimization of supply.
(3) To satisfy these goals, the City of Dillon hereby adopts the following regulations and restrictions on the delivery and consumption of water. This ordinance is hereby declared necessary for the protection of public health, safety and welfare and shall take effect upon its adoption by the City of Dillon.
(4) If it becomes necessary to conserve water in its service area due to drought, the City of Dillon is authorized to issue a proclamation (a "Proclamation") that existing conditions prevent fulfillment of the usual water-use demands. The Proclamation is an attempt to prevent depleting the water supply to the extent that water-use for human consumption, sanitation, fire protection, and other essential needs becomes endangered.
(5) Immediately upon issuance of such a Proclamation, regulations and restrictions set forth under this ordinance shall become effective and remain in effect until the water supply shortage has ended and the Proclamation rescinded.
(6) Water uses that are regulated or prohibited under this ordinance are considered to be non-essential and continuation of such uses during times of water supply shortages is deemed to constitute a waste of water, subjecting the offender(s) to penalties.
(B) Moderate Drought Phase. Upon notification by the Drought Response Committee that a moderate drought condition is present and is expected to persist and/or upon determination by the City of Dillon that a moderate water supply shortage exists based on trigger levels, the City of Dillon will seek voluntary reductions from its customers in the use of water for all purposes and voluntary reductions on using water during certain peak water demand periods. Specifically, the goal during this phase is to achieve a reduction of twenty percent (20%) in residential water use and fifteen percent (15%) in other water uses such as commercial, industrial, institutional and irrigation; and a reduction in overall water use of fifteen percent (15%). To accomplish this, the City of Dillon will take the following actions:
(1) Issue a Proclamation to be released to local media, City of Dillon's customers and to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center that moderate drought conditions are present.
(2) Provide written notification to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center and routinely publish in a newspaper of general circulation in the service area of the water system the voluntary conservation measures that the customers are requested to follow during moderate drought conditions, including:
(a) Reduce residential water use to sixty-five (65) gallons per person per day and a maximum of two hundred (200) gallons per household per day;
(b) Eliminate the washing down of sidewalks, walkways, driveways, parking lots, tennis courts and other hard surfaced areas;
(c) Eliminate the washing down of buildings for purposes other than immediate fire protection;
(d) Eliminate the flushing of gutters;
(e) Eliminate the domestic washing of motorbikes, boats, cars, etc.;
(f) Eliminate the use of water to maintain fountains, reflection ponds and decorative water bodies for aesthetic or scenic purposes, except where necessary to support aquatic life;
(g) Reduce watering of lawns, plants, trees, gardens, shrubbery and flora on private or public property to the minimum necessary. Encourage outdoor watering to be done during off-peak hours.
(h) Reduce the amount of water obtained from fire hydrants for construction purposes, fire drills or for any purpose other than fire-fighting or flushing necessary to maintain water quality; and
(i) Limit normal water use by commercial and individual customers including, but not limited to, the following:
1. Stop serving water in addition to another beverage routinely in restaurants;
2. Stop maintaining water levels in scenic and recreational ponds and lakes, except for the minimum amount required to support aquatic life;
3. Cease water service to customers who have been given a ten (10) day notice to repair one or more leaks and have failed to do so.
(3) Intensify maintenance efforts to identify and correct water leaks in the distribution system.
(4) Cease to install new irrigation taps on the water system.
(5) Continue to encourage and educate customers to comply with voluntary water conservation.
(C) Severe Drought. Upon notification by the Drought Response Committee that a severe drought condition is present and is expected to persist and/or upon determination by the City of Dillon that a severe water supply shortage exists based on trigger levels, City of Dillon will seek voluntary reduction in the use of water for all purposes and mandatory restrictions on non-essential usage and restrictions on times when certain water usage is allowed. Specifically, the goal during this phase is to achieve a reduction of twenty-five percent (25%) in residential water use, twenty percent (20%) in all other water use categories, and a reduction in overall water use of twenty percent (20%). To accomplish these goals, the City of Dillon will take the following actions:
(1) Issue a Proclamation to be released to the local media, City of Dillon's customers and to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center that severe drought conditions are present.
(2) Provide written notification to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center and routinely publish in a newspaper of general circulation in the service area of the water system the voluntary conservation measures and mandatory restrictions to be placed on the use of water supplied by the utility, including:
(a) Voluntary reduction of residential water use by the utility's customers to fifty-five (55) gallons per person per day and a maximum of one hundred and seventy (170) gallons per household or REU per day.
(b) Control landscape irrigation by the utility's customers by staggering watering times.
(c) Mandatory restrictions on the use of water supplied by the utility for activities including:
1. Eliminate the washing down of sidewalks, walkways, driveways, parking lots, tennis courts and other hard surfaced areas;
2. Eliminate the washing down of buildings for purposes other than immediate fire protection;
3. Eliminate the flushing of gutters;
4. Eliminate domestic washing of motorbikes, boats, cars, etc.;
5 Eliminate the use of water to maintain fountains, reflection ponds and decorative water bodies for aesthetic or scenic purposes, except where necessary to support aquatic life;
6 Eliminate filling or maintaining public or private swimming pools;
7. Eliminate obtaining water from fire hydrants for construction purposes, fire drills
or any purpose other than fire-fighting or flushing necessary to maintain water quality; and
(d) Limit use of water by commercial and individual customers including, but not limited to, the following:
1. Stop serving water in addition to another beverage routinely in restaurants;
2. Stop maintaining water levels in scenic and recreational ponds and lakes, except for the minimum amount required to support aquatic life;
3. Limit irrigating golf courses and any portion of its grounds;
4. Cease water service to customers who have been given a ten (10) day notice to repair one or more leaks and have failed to do so; and
5. Limit expanding commercial nursery facilities, placing new irrigated agricultural land in production or planting or landscaping when required by site design review process.
(3) Intensify maintenance efforts to identify and correct water leaks in the distribution system.
(4) Continue to cease installation of new irrigation taps on the water system.
(5) Publicize widely the penalties to be imposed for violations of mandatory restrictions and the procedures to be followed if a variance in the restrictions is requested.
(6) Expand the use of education and public relations efforts and emphasize the penalties associated with violating the mandatory restrictions.
(7) Provide written notification monthly to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center regarding the success of the voluntary and mandatory restrictions.
(D) Extreme Drought. Upon notification by the Drought Response Committee that an extreme drought condition is present and is expected to persist and/or upon determination by the City of Dillon that an extreme water supply shortage exists based on the trigger levels, the City of Dillon will impose mandatory restrictions in the use of water for all purposes and on the times when certain water usage is allowed. Specifically, the goal during this phase is to achieve a reduction of thirty percent (30%) in residential water use, twenty-five percent (25%) in all other categories of water uses and a reduction in overall water use of twenty-five percent (25%). To accomplish these goals, the City of Dillon will take the following actions:
(1) Issue a Proclamation to be released to the local media, the City of Dillon customers and to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center that extreme drought conditions are present;
(2) Provide written notification to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center and routinely publish in a newspaper of general circulation in the service area of the water system the mandatory restrictions to be placed on the use of water supplied by the utility, including:
(a) Limiting residential water use to forty-five (45) gallons per person per day and a maximum of one hundred and fifty (150) gallons per household or REU per day.
(b) Eliminate landscape irrigation by the utility's customers.
(c) Mandatory restrictions on the use of water supplied by the utility for activities including:
1. Eliminate the washing down of sidewalks, walkways, driveways, parking lots, tennis courts and other hard surfaced areas;
2. Eliminate the washing down of buildings for purposes other than immediate fire protection;
3. Eliminate the flushing of gutters;
4. No domestic washing of motorbikes, boats, cars, etc.;
5. Eliminate the use of water to maintain fountains, reflection ponds, and decorative water bodies for aesthetic or scenic purposes, except where necessary to support aquatic life;
6. Eliminate filling or maintaining public or private swimming pools;
7. Eliminate obtaining water from fire hydrants for construction purposes, fire
drills, or any purpose other than firefighting or flushing necessary to maintain water quality; and
(d) Limit normal water use by commercial and individual customers including, but not limited to, the following:
1. Stop serving water in addition to another beverage routinely in restaurants;
2. Stop maintaining water levels in scenic and recreational ponds and lakes, except for the minimum amount required to support fish and wildlife;
3. Limit irrigating golf courses and any portion of their grounds;
4. Cease water service to customers who have been given a ten (10) day notice to repair one or more leaks and have failed to do so; and
5. Limit expanding commercial nursery facilities, placing new irrigated agricultural land in production, or planting or landscaping when required by site design review process.
(3) Intensify maintenance efforts to identify and correct water leaks in the distribution system.
(4) Continue to cease installation of new irrigation taps on the water system.
(5) Outline other conservation measures, examples are:
(a) Place a moratorium on the issuance of all new water service connections and contracts for all new water main extensions. As part of the public information process, provide notice to developers of the moratorium;
(b) Encourage all residential water customers to voluntarily reduce overall monthly water usage to seventy percent (70%) of the customer's monthly average. If voluntary reduction of usage is not successful, the City of Dillon may, at its option, implement the following excessive use rate schedule for water:
Tier I | 0 - 4,000 gallons/REU | regular rate |
Tier II | 4,001 - 6,000 gallons/REU | 2 times regular rate |
Tier III | Over 6,000 gallons/REU | 3 times regular rate |
(c) Impose a drought surcharge per thousand (1,000) gallons of water that increases with higher usage. The general principle behind the drought surcharge is that the fee is imposed on water use in excess of ten percent (10%) of normal monthly use. The drought surcharge is a temporary fee imposed during the current water supply shortage and is not a cost-based rate. The drought surcharge is temporary and will be terminated at such time as the City of Dillon determines the water supply is above the trigger levels.
(d) If the conservation measures of the ordinance or plan prove inadequate to mitigate the effects of the drought conditions or water supply availability, the City of Dillon may take additional actions including, but not limited to:
1. Decreasing the gallon/REU limits in the different tiers; and
2. Reduction of water system pressure as needed.
(6) Publicize widely the penalties to be imposed for violations of mandatory restrictions and the procedures to be followed if a variance in the restrictions is requested.
(7) Expand the use of education and public relations efforts as conducted under the moderate and severe drought phase and emphasize the penalties associated with violating the mandatory restrictions.
(8) Provide written notification monthly to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Drought Information Center regarding the success of the mandatory restrictions.
(E) Rationing.
If a drought threatens the protection of public health and safety, the City of Dillon is hereby authorized to ration water.
(F) Enforcement of Restrictions.
If any customer of the City of Dillon fails to comply with the mandatory water use restrictions of this ordinance, the customer shall be given a written notice of such failure to comply, which cites the date of said violation, and shall be assessed surcharges in accordance with the following schedule:
First violation | $25 surcharge shall be added to the customer's water bill; |
Second violation | An additional $50 surcharge shall be added to the customer's water bill; |
Third violation | The customer's water service shall be terminated and restored only after payment of a surcharge of $100 in addition to all previously assessed surcharges.
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Law enforcement agencies and other authorized agencies or designated employees in the respective jurisdiction which is being supplied water by the City of Dillon shall diligently enforce the provisions of the Drought Response Ordinance.
(G) Variances.
(1) Customers, who in their belief are unable to comply with the mandatory water use restrictions of this Drought Response Ordinance, may petition for a variance from restrictions by filing a petition with the City of Dillon within ten (10) working days after the issuance of the Proclamation requiring water use restrictions. All petitions for variance shall contain the following information:
(a) Name and address of the petitioner;
(b) Purpose of water usage;
(c) Special provision from which the petitioner is requesting relief,
(d) Detailed statement as to how the curtailment declaration adversely affects the petitioner;
(e) Description of the relief desired;
(f) Period of time for which the variance is sought;
(g) Economic value of the water use;
(h) Damage or harm to the petitioner or others if petitioner complies with the ordinance;
(i) Restrictions with which the petitioner is expected to comply and the compliance date;
(j) Steps the petitioner is taking to meet the restrictions from which the variance is sought and the expected date of compliance; and
(k) Other information as needed.
(2) In order for the variance to be granted, the petitioner must demonstrate clearly that compliance with the ordinance cannot be technically accomplished during the duration of the water supply shortage without having an adverse impact upon the best interests of the community. The City of Dillon is authorized to grant the request for variance.
(3) In addition, the City of Dillon is authorized to grant temporary variances for existing water uses otherwise prohibited under the ordinance if it is determined that failure to grant such variances could cause an emergency condition adversely affecting health, sanitation and fire protection for the public. No such variance shall be retroactive or otherwise justify any violation of this ordinance occurring prior to the issuance of the variance. Variances granted by the City of Dillon shall include a timetable for compliance and shall expire when the water supply shortage no longer exists, unless the petitioner has failed to meet specified requirements.
(H) Status of the Ordinance.
(1) If any portion of this ordinance is held to be unconstitutional for any reason, the remaining portions of the Drought Response Ordinance shall not be affected.
(2) The provisions of this ordinance shall prevail and control in the event of any inconsistency between this ordinance and other rules and regulations of the City of Dillon.
(3) Nothing in this ordinance shall be deemed to invalidate or be interpreted in a manner inconsistent with any covenants now in effect and given as security to holders of bonds secured by revenues of the system.
(Am. Ord. 03-17, passed 8-11-2003)