After trying to limit water use for the past month, the Merrimack Village District announced Friday that it is now banning all outside water use.
Officials with the water company, which services about 28,000 customers, say the outside water ban is a result of extremely high usage during the stay at home order, coupled with the closure of two public water wells while a new treatment plant is being constructed to rid the water of contamination.
“Combined usage for the last 24 days averages 4.1 million gallons per day compared to an average of 2.5 million gallons per day in May and June of 2019,” said a statement issued by the Merrimack Village District. “Other public water systems are also reporting extremely high usage during the same time frame and implementing water restrictions.”
To assist with the high water usage, MVD said in a news release that it is supplementing its water supply through the purchase of water from Pennichuck Water Works at an average of 713,751 gallons per day.
According to MVD, the outdoor water ban is intended for the safety of the water supply, and after a warning, violators will have their service terminated and a fee of $125 will be necessary to have the water reconnected.
Outside water use that is currently banned includes the watering of lawns, washing of cars and filling of pools; kiddie pools and the use of watering cans is still permitted.
Earlier this month, MVD attempted other, less stringent water restrictions that involved the implementation of odd and even outdoor watering days.
“The last 24 days of attempting to limit use of water has not been effective,” said the statement, noting the reason for the newest ban.
