§ 1.0. Introduction.

In 1997, the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 1 to require most public water suppliers to prepare a Drought Contingency Plan. The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC), now the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), amended its rules (Title 30, Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 288) regarding Drought Contingency Plans to reflect the Senate Bill 1 requirements. Irving was required to prepare/update its Emergency Water Management Plan to meet these statutory requirements, and submit the plan by September 1, 1999. Irving's Emergency Water Management Plan includes both a Drought Contingency Plan and a Water Conservation Plan.

Since 1999, the plan has been monitored on an ongoing basis and was updated at the following times:

• April 2005 - to meet new statutory requirements.

• June 2006 - to restrict irrigation watering from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. as part of the city's drought stages.

• March 2007 - to add stage 3 plus.

• December 2008 - to implement irrigation restrictions.

• April 2009 - to meet statutory requirements.

• June 2011 - to restrict irrigation from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from April 1 through October 31 as a water conservation methodology and continuously during every drought stage beyond drought stage 1.

• December 2011 - to consolidate stages 3 and 3 plus, include additional restrictions, insert easy to read stage charts and reformat the drought stage restrictions.

The TCEQ guidelines and requirements for water suppliers are included in Appendix G. This drought contingency plan is consistent with the TCEQ guidelines and requirements for the development of drought contingency plans by the public drinking water suppliers, contained in Title 30, Part 1, Chapter 288, Subchapter B, Rule 288.20 of the Texas Administrative Code. The provisions of Chapter 288 require the City of Irving to develop, submit, and implement a combination of strategies for temporary supply and demand management responses to temporary and potentially recurring water supply shortages and other water supply emergencies.

The objectives of the drought contingency plan are:

• To conserve the available water supply in times of drought and emergency

• To maintain supplies for domestic water use, sanitation, and fire protection

• To protect and preserve public health, welfare, and safety

• To minimize the adverse impacts of water supply shortages

This document describes the City of Irving's Drought Contingency Plan and includes updates to the original plan as required by the TCEQ.

(Ord. No. 2011-9302, § 1, 12-8-11)