Water restrictions eased

In her April 21 letters to area officials, Carol A. Couch, director of the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, also gave them the option of allowing watering on Saturdays and Sundays. Until now, the state had restricted watering in north Georgia to weekdays.

Myron Garrett, director of the Barrow County Water & Sewer Authority, said this week that Barrow County and Winder officials have agreed to set the same watering days so that there is no confusion among water customers.

Starting Wednesday, those with odd-numbered street addresses may turn on their sprinklers, wash their cars and pressure-wash their homes from midnight to 10 a.m. on Thursdays and Sundays. Those with even-numbered addresses may do the same on Wednesdays and Saturdays. On one other weekday – a Monday or Tuesday – property owners may water their plants with hand-held hoses equipped with nozzles that shut off automatically when the hoses are not held. That hand-held watering may be done for only 25 minutes on that third day of the week, said Garrett.

Some watering remains prohibited at all times: washing hard surfaces such as streets, gutters, sidewalks and driveways except when necessary for public health and safety; and using hydrants for any purpose other than firefighting, public health, safety or flushing.

Other watering, for vegetable gardens and swimming pools, is exempt from all watering restrictions. For more information, water customers in the coming days should check their local governments' Web sites and also look for watering instructions in their water bills.