Oahu sees drop
in water supplyRecent rainfall hasn’t affected
levels enough to rule out possible
mandatory restrictions
Despite recent heavy rain, Oahu residents could see mandatory water restrictions this summer.
"We're not getting the kinds of rainfall that would make a difference," said Clifford Jamile, Honolulu Board of Water Supply manager and chief engineer. "What we'd like to see is a constant rainfall in the mountains saturate the watersheds."
Water levels at the island's main pumping stations were on average half-a-foot lower last month, when compared with the year before, he said.
Jamile said mandatory restrictions could be a "very likely course of action to take" if water levels continue to drop as consumption increases during the hot, dry summer months.
The board asked residents in August to voluntarily restrict water consumption when demand reached an all-time high of 180 million gallons a day while levels at key aquifers remained lower than average.
The restrictions were lifted in November, when consumption islandwide dropped to less than 154 million gallons daily.
In December, aquifers in Pearl City, Kalihi and Pearlridge were about a half-a-foot lower than levels reported during the same period in 2002.
Jamile said water levels at key stations have been steadily declining during the past few years and are on average two feet lower than those recorded during this time four years ago.
"You're not likely to see the (station) heads recovering without a prolonged heavy rain," he said. "We've had six years of drought. As a consequence, we're going to require six years or more of average rainfall and/or a reduction in demand" to recover.
He said even though Honolulu Airport, for example, recorded almost twice the average rain last month, the island got only 83 percent of what's considered normal rainfall for December.
"We're not to the point of getting the normal rainfall on average," he said.
Jamile said the board will debut its annual conservation ad campaign, which usually begins during the summer, six months early this year in anticipation of water level problems.
"It's not too soon to begin thinking conservation," he said.
Jamile also said the island's largest water consumers, including companies and state institutions, will beasked to conserve or voluntarily restrict consumption.