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Water Basics

• 97% of the world’s water is salty or undrinkable.  Another 2% is locked in ice caps and glaciers.  That leaves only 1% for consumption by all living creatures, including animals and plants.
• Water is the only substance found on earth in three forms: solid, liquid and gas. 
• You can go for weeks without food but only a few days without water. 
• If everyone in the US flushed the toilet just one less time per day, we could save a lake full of water about one mile long, one mile wide and four feet deep. 
• There are 69,000 water meters in Amarillo at homes and businesses. 
• The City’s water is supplied from two sources: A system of wells drawing water from the Ogallala Aquifer and Lake Meredith when water is available. 
• Lake Meredith is dependent on rainfall and snowmelt to replace the water used by the City. 
• The average annual rainfall in the Amarillo area is about 20 inches.  Amarillo is considered a semi-desert area. 

Daily Water Usage Goal

View the daily usage.

Please Help Reduce Your Use:

• Please do not water on windy days.
• Water lawns between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am with water cycles being completed by 6am.
• Water lawns 2 but not more than 3 times per week.
• If your address ends in an ODD number, water only on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays.
• If your address ends in an EVEN number, water only on Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays.
• No watering on Saturdays.
• Cool season grasses need to be watered for approximately 25 minutes
• Warm season grasses need to be watered for approximately 20 minutes

Thanks for your help in reducing your use!

• From: Jan 1 - Current date for the year: 2013 - 4.9 billion gallons
• From: Jan 1 - Current date for the year: 2012 - 5 billion gallons
• From: Jan 1 - Current date for the year: 2011 - 5.9 billion gallons
• From: Jan 1 - Current date for the year: 2010 - 4.7 billion gallons
• From: Jan 1 - Current date for the year: 2009 - 5.2 billion gallons

• 2013 - May 18, 2013 - 64.4 million gallons
• 2012 - July 31, 2012 - 92.1 million gallons
• 2011 - June 4, 2011 - 88.7 million gallons
• 2010 - August 3, 2010 - 79.3 million gallons
• 2009 - July 15, 2009 - 82.0 million gallons

Historical Info

2012 State of the Water System

PDF: View the presentation.
PPT: View the presentation. 10 meg Powerpoint file. File will need to be unzipped.