JAMES CITY COUNTY — The James City Service Authority (JCSA) is asking its customers to voluntarily refrain from irrigating their lawns and to hold off on major landscaping projects after a primary distribution water main broke.
The conservation measures affect all but nine neighborhoods around the county. JCSA says that, for now, these actions are completely voluntary, but could become mandatory if there is not a decrease in consumption.
In a press release, the JCSA said that the break has not resulted in a loss of service to customers, nor has it affected the department’s ability to provide adequate water pressure and flow.
However, as the demands for water increase during warm weather months, peak consumption could prove too taxing on the system and hamper the JCSA’s ability to provide adequate water pressure and flow for essential services such as fire protection.
“I realize that the voluntary restrictions are inconvenient, especially at this time of the year,” said Doug Powell, general manager for the JCSA. “However, in the interest of public safety and in an effort to ensure that we can maintain our fire protection capacity, we urge customers to refrain from irrigating their lawns until we can replace the broken main.”
The broken main, which sits 30 feet under Powhatan Creek, is slated to be fixed by mid-July. Construction will begin once the necessary permits have been obtained.
Neighborhoods that receive their water from independent wells are not being asked to observe the conservation measures.
Neighborhoods that are not affected by the water main break include: Glenwood Acres, King’s Village, Liberty Ridge, Racefield, Riverview Plantation, The Retreat, Ware Creek Manor, Westport and Wexford Hills. These neighborhoods are on independent wells.
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