AMHERST – Two inches of rain that fell Monday gave Amherst a good soaking, providing relief to lawns and gardens, but water restrictions imposed during the prolonged drought remain in place.
“It’s sort of temporary relief,” Town Manager Paul Bockleman said on Tuesday. “It doesn’t solve the problem.”
Atkins Reservoir in Shutesbury will still be shut down on Wednesday, and the town will then rely exclusively on the wells in South Amherst to provide municipal water to residents for the near term.
The two reservoirs in Pelham, like Atkins, are off line, but will be used again sometime later this year, Bockelman said.
So far, the mandatory water ban, in place since mid-August, is working, with the town pumping an average of 3½ million gallons of water a day.
“Usage continues to be slightly below average, which is good,” Bockelman said.
Bockelman said he and other Amherst officials are still meeting weekly with staff from the University of Massachusetts and Amherst and Hampshire colleges to review response plans they have developed to deal with any water-related emergencies.
“All three campuses have a response plan to cut down on the amount of water,” Bockelman said.
There are three tiers to these response plans, some of which would be used only if there is an unexpected significant draw on water, such as a large structure fire, Bockelman said.
“A really good partnership developed strong protocols for working together and continuing to work together in the future,” Bockelman said.
Amherst is also working with surrounding towns that provide mutual aid to determine whether their fire trucks, which carry water, could be used.
The town also has asked permission from the Conservation Commission for safely and responsibly using water from ponds to fill fire engines.
“A lot of contingencies are being worked on,” Bockelman said.
Meanwhile, Amherst hired Tata & Howard Inc., of Marlborough, to model the entire water system to project what might happen under certain scenarios of water use and continued drought to ensure a sufficient supply of water is available.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
