Austin Water Utility moved to Drought Response Stage 2 Water Use Restrictions on Sept. 4. in preparation for receding lake levels.

"We've kind of been in unprecedented times since 2009," Austin Water Utility spokesman Jason Hill said. "Last year at this time, we were experiencing the drought of history. This year we're still feeling the effects of that."

The decision to move to Stage 2 restrictions was made because the combined storage levels of lakes Travis and Buchanan are expected to drop below 900,000 acre-feet the first week of September.

Stage 2 restricts use of automatic irrigation systems to before 5 a.m. or after 7 p.m. Residents with odd-numbered addresses may use automatic sprinklers on Wednesdays, and even-numbered addresses may water with automatic sprinklers on Thursdays. Commercial and multifamily even-numbered addresses are allowed to use automatic irrigation on Tuesdays, and odd-numbered addresses are allowed to water on Fridays.

Hose-end sprinklers may be used before 10 a.m. or after 7 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, although drip irrigation is exempt from the schedule. Soaker hoses and tree bubblers under the canopy drip-line of trees also are exempt.

Additional restrictions for commercial businesses include use of patio misters between 4 p.m. and midnight and only serving water if requested by a customer.

Public schools are allowed to water before 5 a.m. or after 7 p.m. on Mondays.

According to the Water Conservation Code that was revised by City Council in August, the city manager may order the use of drought stages "after determining that the order is necessary to protect the public health, safety or welfare."

Hill said restrictions were scaled back to Stage 1 in July, which allowed residents "time to address the health of the tree canopy and their outdoor landscaping."

"We hoped we'd be able to (prevent) going into Stage 2 again, but you can't predict mother nature," he said.

Hill said that although the utility doesn't expect to move to Stage 3 restrictions in the near future, it is prepared for that option.

"We are prepared now, and our stakeholders have (worked) with us in creating and updating the stages so everyone is comfortable now with that possibility," he said. "If we have to step up our game and do that, we're prepared."

The Stage 3 supply trigger is when the combined storage levels of lakes Travis and Buchanan falls below 600,000 acre-feet or "a drought worse than the drought of record is declared," according to the City of Austin's Drought Contingency Plan. Stage 1 is triggered when the combined storage levels of the lakes reaches 1.4 million acre-feet.

For Stage 2 restrictions to be lifted, the lakes would have to reach 1.1 million acre-feet and be projected to stay at about 900,000 acre-feet for four months.

A warning will be issued for initial violations of restrictions, and a citation will be written if the violation is not fixed. Fines can start at $475.

For more information, visit the water utility's website at www.austintexas.gov/department/water.