How to save water in Austin (and why it matters here)

Austin's tap water comes from the Highland Lakes, the two big reservoirs on the Colorado River. When drought drains them, the whole city feels it, and it takes years of good rain to refill them. Meanwhile the Edwards Aquifer southwest of town keeps its own drought clock: the lakes can recover from a wet summer while the aquifer that feeds Barton Springs stays deep in drought. Saving water helps both.

The habit is working. In 2011 Austin Water customers used more than 160 gallons per person per day; by the mid-2020s that was down to about 130, and the city's goal is 119 by the end of the decade. That progress came mostly from one place: lawns. Landscape irrigation is about a third of everything single-family homes use.

One thing surprises newcomers: Austin has watering rules all the time, drought or not. Since 2016 the baseline Conservation Stage has limited automatic sprinklers to one assigned day per week, in the morning and evening only; deeper drought stages tighten from there. Hand watering is always allowed. Check your watering day and the current schedule before setting a controller.

There are many ways to reduce your water footprint, in rough order of impact:

• Water the lawn less. Austin Water estimates once-a-week watering saves 7,000 to 14,000 gallons a month versus daily habits. Most lawns need at most an inch a week, less in shade, and none in winter.
• Shrink the lawn. Native and drought-adapted beds need a fraction of the water turf does, and the city's WaterWise rebates pay a meaningful share of the conversion.
• Catch leaks early. The My ATX Water smart meter portal can help catch leaks (even a small leak wastes hundreds of gallons a month). Heavy irrigators can also get a free system check-up from the city.
• Harvest the rain. Rain barrels and cisterns are rebated, and a covered pool loses far less to evaporation.
• Then the indoors. Efficient toilets and showerheads help, but outdoor water dwarfs them in the Austin summer. Austin Water gives away efficient showerheads and aerators for free.

The city keeps a current list of rebates and free tools. If you're on a well over the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards Aquifer, the conservation district asks for deeper cuts than the city does during drought, starting with skipping outdoor watering entirely. And whatever your source, the drought page shows how all of it is doing right now.