Water Commish: 'Think About Your Fellow Man'

Syosset residents have been interrupted at dinnertime not with telemarketers, but with recordings asking that they conserve water in the midst of high temperatures and drought.

Unfortunately, not enough people are listening.

Nicholas Bartilucci, commissioner for the Jericho Water District–which covers Jericho, Syosset and parts of several other localities–says the district is pumping out its maximum daily capacity to deal with people watering their lawns. Residents began receiving recordings on July 1 reminding them to water lawns only every-other day. By Tuesday recordings asked residents to stop watering lawns completely. 

He says that both January and February averaged around 6 million gallons per day of usage. Right now the district is pumping out 44 million gallons per day.

A big part of the problem is people disregarding county ordinances as it pertains to lawn watering. No watering is permitted between 10 a.m.-4 p.m., and residents are only allowed to water every-other day based on their home address. Even-numbered addresses can water on even-numbered days, and vice versa. 

Water district employees can only hand out warning tickets to violators.

"Police, understandably, don't want to be handing out tickets for watering," Bartilucci says. "They have several other things to do."

Syosset residents may not have noticed a problem because the hamlet is at a lower ground level than other parts of the district. But complaints have come from other areas.

"In Upper Brookville, if you've got a shower on the second floor you might not be getting a shower," Bartilucci says. 

He adds that water levels could return to acceptable levels with one good thunderstorm and another strong rain within the subsequent four or five days. According to the National Weather Service there's a slight chance of rain Friday, with storms likely Saturday after 10 a.m. The forecast looks clear for Sunday, with a chance of rain returning Tuesday evening. 

Until then, Bartilucci reminds residents that a slighter browner lawn could mean real relief for someone else.

"Think about your fellow man," he says.