Augusta County declares drought warning

AUGUSTA COUNTY, Va. (WHSV) - Augusta County announced that the Board of Supervisors declared a drought warning for the County during a meeting on Wednesday, September 13. The board is also asking the Virginia Farm Service Agency to designate Augusta County as a drought disaster area, which could impact producers in the County.

The drought warning follows the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality’s drought warning advisory that was announced on August 30. If Augusta County is designated as a drought disaster area, then the county says area producers who are adversely impacted by the drought could apply for federal and state emergency loans and other emergency assistance programs.

Augusta Water offered tips to residential and commercial users for conserving water, and you can find some of those tips on their website. You can also find more tips for conserving water here.

Augusta Water has suspended hydrant flow testing as well as the unidirectional flushing program where hydrants are opened to flush accumulated mineral buildup from the lines. Fire-Rescue will reduce all non-emergency water usage and stop all non-certified fire and pump training where it requires the flow of water to help with the drought conditions.

The facilities maintenance department has suspended irrigation service at the Government Center, minimized fleet vehicle washing, and proactively installed automatic faucets in most county facilities to reduce water consumption.

If you’d like updates on drought conditions in Augusta County, they recommend people check here for updates.

As of the latest drought monitor, most of Augusta County is in a moderate drought but a few places are at the severe drought level.