The state Department of Environmental Protection announced that it is lifting a drought watch for Berks, Chester, Clarion, Fayette, Lehigh, and Venango counties.
The drought watch remains in place for the following counties: Adams, Bucks, Cameron, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Montgomery, Northampton, and Perry Counties.
Clinton County will return to drought watch. York County will continue in drought warning to support the efforts of water suppliers and their customers to conserve water. While not required, residents and non-farm businesses in drought watch counties are encouraged to voluntarily conserve water by reducing their nonessential water use.
Ways to Conserve Water at Home: here are many ways to conserve water at home, including:
- Run the dishwasher and washing machine less often, and only with full loads.
- Shorten the time you let the water run to warm up before showering, and take shorter showers. The shower and toilet are the two biggest indoor water guzzlers.
- Check for and repair household leaks. For example, a leaking toilet can waste up to 200 gallons of water daily.
- Install low-flow plumbing fixtures and aerators on faucets.
- Replace older appliances with high-efficiency, front-loading models that use about 30% less water and 40-50% less energy.
Find more tips at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
How DEP Determines Drought Conditions
To determine drought conditions, DEP assesses information from public water suppliers and data on four indicators: precipitation, surface water (stream and river) flow, groundwater level, and soil moisture. The DEP Drought Coordinator monitors the indicators in close partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), which maintains gauges in streams and wells in many locations across Pennsylvania. There are normal ranges for all four indicators. DEP makes drought status recommendations after assessing departures from these ranges for all indicators for periods of 3-12 months. For a map that’s updated daily to show the status of all four indicators for each county, see the USGS Pennsylvania drought condition monitoring website. DEP shares these data and its recommendations with the state and federal agencies and other organizations that make up the Commonwealth Drought Task Force. Declarations are determined by DEP, with the concurrence of the task force. For more information on how DEP monitors conditions and makes drought status declarations, see the drought management fact sheet