Drought Management

The Water Supply Index (WSI) is a calculation to determine our water supply health. This is a ratio of our immediately available water supplies and our current demand. Factors that affect supply are the amount of imported water, surface water, groundwater and stored water, as well as the ability to get these supplies to the various plants for treatment and delivery. Increased demand tracks closely with higher temperatures and can spike with prolonged dry and hot weather. To declare a drought stage (described below), the index must be in a specific range for a specified period of time before that stage is declared. Drought stages are a water management tool to ensure the community has the potable water necessary for our customers during an exceptionally high demand period or during extreme weather conditions.

Drought Restrictions

  1. Currently, there are no drought restrictions in the Town of Castle Rock. Thank you for being water wise.

Drought management planning

The Town's water supply includes renewable water. While renewable water is more sustainable in the long run, it's more heavily affected by weather conditions. Castle Rock Water has developed a Drought Management Plan to adjust for times of abnormally dry weather and times when there are not sufficient supplies to satisfy typical customer water demands.

The main purpose of the Drought Management Plan is to preserve essential public services and minimize the adverse effects of drought on public health and safety, economic activity, environmental resources, and individual lifestyles during a drought event. The restrictions are administered in prescribed stages and address all water users.

Read the full plan (PDF).

Drought condition stages

Drought stages will be announced if the community begins experiencing excessively dry weather or supply constraints that could impact renewable water supplies. Drought stages are detailed below and will be announced on this webpage above, the homepage of CRgov and the Town's social media platforms, at minimum. The drought stages will outline specific actions that will be required.

Stage                                             Goal Primary Action
Stage 1 - Advisory 10% water savings through voluntary use reductions Strict adherence to standard irrigation practices that promote efficient water use.
Stage 2 - Watch 25% savings Outdoor watering limited to two days per week, including hand watering, and no exemptions for Water Wiser participants.
Stage 3 - Warning 40% savings Outdoor watering limited to one day per week, including hand watering, and no exemptions for Water Wiser participants.
Stage 4 - Emergency 50% savings All outdoor watering/irrigation is banned.
Stage 5 - Crisis 60%+ savings All outdoor watering is banned along with identified indoor restrictions.

Water use priorities

The drought restrictions apply to all customers, however, specific actions are delineated by need. Essential uses for the health and safety of the community were given the highest priority. Water uses for existing business (in the form of indoor use) were assigned a second priority. Outdoor irrigation, water use for public spaces, and residential and commercial water supplies were assigned lower priorities.

Priority End Use  Description
1 Health and Safety Indoor residential, water treatment plant, hydrants (for emergency use), wastewater treatment plants, schools, hospitals and other emergency services.
2 Business Indoor Use Indoor use by the commercial and public sector including stores, offices, hotels, restaurants, etc.
3 Outdoor Irrigation - Public Spaces Parks, sports fields, landscapes, swimming pools, homeowners association (HOA) parks, and open/recreational spaces. Trees prioritized over turf. Outdoor commercial business or business enterprise (including golf courses), as well as construction purposes.
4 Outdoor Irrigation - Residential and Commercial Outdoor irrigation in the single- and multi-family residences, and public and commercial sectors (including car wash facilities). HOA streetscapes/greenbelts. Reasonable environmental protection.