Thursday, August 26, 1999

Rain charging reservoirs, but water bans unaffected

---

The Associated Press

        COLUMBUS, Ohio — Rains heavy enough to trigger flood watches in eastern Ohio helped some reservoirs but had no effect on mandatory watering bans in place because of the drought, state and local officials said.

        “Some ground water supplies may see a little bit of improvement, but it will be somewhat temporary,” Dave Cashell, a hydrologist with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said Wednesday.

WATERING BANS

Forty-five Ohio communities or water districts have instituted voluntary or mandatory watering bans because of the drought. Some examples:   • Village of Blanchester   County: Clinton   Type of ban: Mandatory   Prohibited: Watering lawns, washing cars or filling pools.   • Village of Flushing   County: Belmont   Type of ban: Mandatory   Prohibited: Watering lawns, washing cars.   • City of Kent   County: Portage   Type of ban: Voluntary   Prohibited: Request for voluntary reduction.   • Copley Square Water   County: Summit   Type of ban: Voluntary   Prohibited: Watering lawns.   • Village of Canal Winchester   County: Franklin   Type of ban: Mandatory   Prohibited: Lawn watering permitted only 9-11 a.m. and 7-9 p.m.   • Columbus   County: Franklin   Type of ban: Voluntary   Prohibited: People asked to conserve water and water lawns 8-10 a.m. only.   Source: Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, Division of Drinking and Ground Waters

        The National Weather Service says 2-4 inches of rain fell on parts of eastern Ohio Tuesday night, prompting a flash flood watch for five counties. More rain is in the forecast.

        To date this summer, 45 communities or water districts have reported voluntary or mandatory watering bans.

        The state has asked all water districts to institute some kind of voluntary restrictions this summer, said Mike Baker, chief of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's drinking and groundwater division. But Mr. Baker said many water districts learned from the droughts of 1988 and 1991 and were better prepared this time.

        In Blanchester, about 15 miles northeast of Cincinnati, a mandatory ban on watering lawns, washing cars and filling swimming pools has been in place since July 19.

        The village of about 4,500 people received more than 2 inches of rain Tuesday, but its main 45 million-gallon reservoir is still dangerously low, with only about 6 million gallons.

        Fred Freeman, the village's chief water operator, said it would take a series of sustained rains to lift the ban, something he doesn't expect.

        “We've been doing things along the way — I even put a notice in the paper asking people to cut back before the emergency was declared, but it didn't help a whole lot,” Mr. Freeman said.

        In Ashland, a ban on watering lawns and washing cars has been in place since July 30. However, the city of 22,000 does allow people to water their vegetable and flower gardens and newly planted lawns.

        Heavy rain last week and Tuesday helped decrease usage, but there are no plans to lift the ban, Mayor Douglas Cellar said Wednesday. “We've had very few complaints about people not being not allowed to water, but we have had anonymous calls from people to report that So-and-So is watering or washing their car,” Mr. Cellar said.

        Ashland resident Lori Kinney said the ban hasn't been a big deal. The family takes its cars to local car washes and is letting its lawn go dry.

        The biggest effect is probably on lawn treatment services. “That's a pretty big business around our neighborhood, but you're not going to pay for having your lawn tended to that way when it's dead,” Ms. Kinney said.

        Ohio's groundwater levels aren't at record-low levels yet, Mr. Cashell said. But that could change if weather during the coming winter and spring, when levels are normally replenished, is also dry.

---

How to put a porker in your art collection
600 join melting pot
Schools sued for holy day closings
Kings Island taking no chances
Recent deaths of riders at Tristate parks
Art museums try to draw Web audience
Nine hospitals drop Medicare HMO
What's Your Opinion: Questions of fairness
Hate-crime hoax at Miami?
New world opens for students
Sea of friends mourn Ross teens
Lawsuit charges abuse of teen inmate
Will GOP's bite be as big as its bark?
Pilfered lawn duck at-large
'Resource Guide' offers breast cancer network
Who killed King Tut? 'Mr. Mummy' might know
$214,000 goes for rec projects
County lags 200 years on some paperwork
GET TO IT
Girl who wants to be vet saves 6 pups trapped in pipe
Judge rules city may raze building
Man found dead in Over-the-Rhine
Mayor's court now magistrate's
Monroe council approves 2 officials
NKU, Sparks honor each other
Payroll change upsets workers
Police looking for witnesses to fatal crash
Prisoner's beard-cutting case headed to trial
Rain charging reservoirs, but water bans unaffected
Residents weigh in on bridge's future
Skipped-paycheck plan upsets workers
Slain woman's family sues store where she worked
Theater land offered for roomier library
TRISTATE DIGEST
Upscale seniors' residence proposed
Villa Hills eliminates administrator job
Weapons unlikely to be burned
Zoning chief latest to quit development department