James City County News – For Immediate Release Date: July 20, 2010 Media Contact:  Larry M. Foster, (757) 253-6806, lmfoster@james-city.va.us Declaration of Stage I Drought Conditions Sanford B. Wanner, County Administrator, has declared Stage I drought conditions for James City County as required by County code.  Once average daily demands exceed 7.06 million gallons per day or 80 percent of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) groundwater withdrawal permit daily equivalent for 30 consecutive days, a voluntary water conservation declaration is required. 

In order to reduce demands on the James City Service Authority (JCSA) water system, JCSA water customers are encouraged to conserve water.  Recommendations include but are not limited to:
 - Limit outdoor watering of shrubbery, trees, lawns, grass, plants or any other vegetation.
-  Limit the filling or refilling of swimming and/or wading pools.
-  Limit the washing of automobiles, trucks, trailers and boats and only use a hose with an automatic shut-off.
- Limit the washing of streets, driveways, parking lots, the exterior of homes or apartments or other outdoor surfaces.

 If Stage I fails to bring about necessary water savings, Stage II will be put into effect and the above water uses could be prohibited.  Stage II will be implemented if the average daily demand continues to exceed seven and a half million gallons per day or 85 percent of the permitted allowance for 45 days.  Declaration of Stage II could occur as early as August 3rd.  Please note that this declaration does not apply to private wells or residents in Kingsmill and Grove who are provided water service by Newport News Waterworks.





Virginia Issues Statewide Drought Watch  
On July 14, DEQ issued a Drought Watch for all regions of the state, and voluntary Drought Restrictions are now in place in all regions. According to DEQ, the primary factors contributing to this declaration include: Approximately 86% of the Commonwealth is experiencing abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions as defined by the U.S. Drought Monitor The majority of Virginia has experienced below normal precipitation over the last 60 days with some areas receiving less than 50% of the average precipitation The majority of stream monitoring locations across Virginia are recording stream flows below normal ranges (less than the 25th percentile). Helpful Resources for you: DEQ's Drought Monitoring website Virginia Drought Monitoring and Response Plan U.S. Drought Monitor 

PRESIDENT's WELCOME:
On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Virginia Irrigation Association, I want to welcome you and thank you for visiting our association's website. We are a unique group of irrigation contractors, distributors, manufacturers and affiliate members joined together in a common goal. Whether you are a contractor in Northern Virginia, Southside, the western part of the state or in the Tidewater and Eastern Shore regions, we all share similar issues and face the same challenges of protecting our industry while working with state and local officials to protect and conserve our valued limited resource.

If you have any questions, need additional information, or have any input or feedback, please feel free to contact any member of the board. We encourage you to become a member and get involved with us. I encourage you to return often to stay informed about upcoming events and news and information regarding irrigation and legislative initiatives that can affect you.

When we ALL work together, we can be part of the solution, and not just be perceived as part of the problem.

Glenn Gross, President

MISSION: 
The mission of the Virginia Irrigation Association is to improve the practices used to manage water resources and shape the business environment of the irrigation industry in Virginia. The VIA's interest in water resources encompasses conservation, drainage, improvement, and recovery of water for economic and environmental enhancement. We will cooperate with professional trade associations and industry professionals.

Strategic Plan:
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