Somerset County Residents Asked to Conserve Water During an Abnormally Dry Summer

By Barbara A. Preston | July 21, 2022

Lawns are turning brown, small plants are wilting, and farmers with limited water access are observing stunted crop growth. Still, Somerset County is just "Abnormally Dry" according to the official U.S. Drought Monitor.

With hot and dry weather forecast for the near future, north-central New Jersey, and the bottom tip of the state, could soon be in a drought situation. New Jersey American Water is requesting that its customers in five central New Jersey counties to limit outdoor water use.

Residents of Somerset, Mercer, Middlesex, Union, and Hunterdon counties are asked to follow odd/even watering guidelines for their lawns and gardens.

Sprinklers should only be used on odd-numbered days for residents with an odd number street address and even-numbered days if the address is an even number..

“Our systems are currently operating normally at expected capacity, but we are seeing a steep increase in demands across these counties,” said Tom Shroba, vice president of operations at New Jersey American Water. “Adopting an odd/even schedule for outdoor watering will have minimal impacts on the individual customer but will provide a significant relief in demand on our source of supply.”

Every Drop Counts

It's estimated that up to 50 percent of the water people use outdoors in the summer is not needed to maintain a healthy landscape, according to NJ American Water. A handy guide can help residents to use water responsibly while still enjoying summertime.

Please keep conservation in mind.

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