For the purposes of this plan and the accompanying ordinances, the following definitions will apply.
AESTHETIC WATER USE. Water use for ornamental or decorative purposes such as fountains, reflecting pools and waterfalls.
COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL USE. Water use integral to the production of goods and/or services by any establishment having profit as its primary aim.
CONSERVATION. Reduction in water use to prevent depletion or waste of the resource.
CUSTOMER. Any person, company or organization using finished water owned or supplied by the town.
DOMESTIC WATER USE. Water use for personal needs or for household purposes such as drinking, bathing, heating, cooking, sanitation or for cleaning a residence, business, industry or institution.
DROUGHT ALERT PHASES. There are four drought alert phases to be determined by the Drought Response Committee for the state. The four phases are:
(1) Incipient drought;
(2) Moderate drought;
(3) Severe drought; and
(4) Extreme drought.
DROUGHT RESPONSE MANAGEMENT AREA.
(1) There are four drought management areas corresponding to the major river basins in the state. These four areas are:
(a) West or Savannah;
(b) Central or Santee;
(c) Northeast or Pee Dee; and
(d) Southern or Ashepoo, Combahee and Edisto.
(2) In order to prevent overly broad response to drought conditions, drought response measures shall be considered within individual drought management areas or within individual counties, as applicable.
DROUGHT RESPONSE COMMITTEE. A committee composed of state and local representatives created for the purpose of coordinating responses to water supply shortages within drought management areas and making recommendations for action to the state’s Department of Natural Resources and/or the Governor. The COMMITTEE is composed of state agency representatives from the state’s Emergency Management Division of the office of the Adjutant General, state’s Department of Health and Environmental Control, state’s Department of Agriculture, state’s Forestry Commission and state’s Department of Natural Resources, as well as local committees representing counties, municipalities, public service districts, private water suppliers, agriculture, industry, domestic users, regional councils of governments, commissions of public works, power generation facilities, special purpose districts and soil and water conservation districts.
ESSENTIAL WATER USE. Water used specifically for firefighting, maintaining in-stream flow requirements and to satisfy federal, state or local public health and safety requirements.
FINISHED WATER. Water distributed for use after treatment. The terms “water use”, “water user” and “water customer” refer to FINISHED WATER use unless otherwise defined.
INSTITUTIONAL WATER USE. Water used by government, public and private educational institutions, churches and places of worship, water utilities and organizations within the public domain.
IRRIGATION WATER USE. Water used to maintain gardens, trees, lawns, shrubs, flowers, athletic fields, rights-of-way and medians.
NON-ESSENTIAL WATER USE. Categories of water use other than essential water use. Examples of NON-ESSENTIAL WATER USE include landscape irrigation and washing of buildings, parking lots, automobiles, boats and the like.
PALMER INDEX. A measure of the severity of a drought or a wet spell in an area. Dry conditions are associated with negative values, wet conditions with positive values, and normal conditions have a value of zero.
RESIDENTIAL EQUIVALENT UNIT (REIT). An equivalency unit defined to be equal to one single-family residence. The town’s allocated water capacity equals 300 gallons per day per REU.
SC DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES. The state agency with primacy to implement the provisions of the Drought Response Act, being S.C. Code §§ 49-23-10 et seq.
WATER SUPPLY SHORTAGE. Lack of adequate, available water caused by drought to meet normal demands.
(Prior Code, § 20-14.2) (Ord. passed 10-21-2003)