The Mancos Marshal’s Office has issued two citations for watering outside the town’s permitted hours.
Town trustees discussed the restrictions at their Board meeting Wednesday after officials said voluntary conservation efforts earlier this year did not produce a meaningful reduction in water use.
Mancos Public Works Director Kyle Rieck said the town’s water-treatment plant is now operating between 15 and 22 hours a day.
Rieck also told the Board, “Producing water off of the lake increases the number of times we have to backwash, so therefore it reduces our total capacity to produce water. That being said, right now it’s based mostly on climate usage. So we’ve had a bunch of hot days with relatively low precipitation, and people are just using water trying to maintain everything."
The town has approximately 850-thousand gallons of treated-water storage. Rieck said that could provide less than a day and a half of water if the treatment plant failed or could no longer receive raw water.
Watering violations are handled through municipal court and can carry a fine of up to 499 dollars per day. Officials said residents were previously warned and educated before citations were issued.
Trustees also asked staff to examine the amount of water used at Boyle Park and whether the town should reduce its own irrigation.
The board plans to reconsider Mancos’s broader watering rules this winter.
