Emergency mandatory restrictions are in effect due to a drought in the City of Kingston.

The Board of Water Commissioners put volunteer restrictions into place on July 14 but say they are now forced to put compulsory limits into effect.

Officials say this is all to address the decreasing water level in the Cooper Lake Reservoir.

They say to accommodate mandated construction there at the dam, the water level had to be lowered 10 feet - but that level needs to be maintained for the duration of the dam construction.

These following restrictions are effective immediately and include:

1. All leaks shall be fixed immediately;

2. No washing of cars or other vehicles. Only those commercial vehicle washing operations that recycle 50% of the water used are exempt from this regulation;

3. No washing sidewalks, buildings, driveways, steps, or other outdoor areas by any means that is connected to or supplied by the Kingston Water Department;

4. All ornamental artificial water features, such as fountains, water falls, reflecting pools,etc., that do not use recycled water must be discontinued;

5. There shall be no watering of lawns, golf courses, or ornamental shrubs, plants, or trees, except that:

a. Lawns, ornamental plants, trees, and shrubs, and golf courses may be watered once each day from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m.;

b. Water may be used at anytime from a hand held container to water vegetables or fruit trees grown for human consumption;

c. Plant nurseries or other commercial growers engaged in the business of growing, distributing, or selling plants may use water on their premises for watering their plants, provided that each such user reduces its use of water by 15%;

6. Pools that are equipped with recirculation equipment may continue in operation and water may be used to maintain the water level in the pool. All pools that are not equipped with recirculation devices cannot be refilled nor can water from the city supply be used to maintain the water level;

7. All non-residential users of water from the Kingston Water Department shall prepare and retain a water consumption reduction plan, enabling it to reduce its use of water in stages of 15%, 20%, and 25% based upon its consumption during the calendar year. During this Stage 1 of the Drought Emergency, the 15% reduction is consumption is immediately effective.

They also list some conservation tips

• Fix leaky faucets. Those drips add up and repairing leaky toilets and sinks will save you on your next water and sewer bill;

• Only run washing machines and dishwashers when they are full

• Turn off water while brushing your teeth. This can save up to 4 gallons with each brushing. That can add up. If everyone in the city does this twice each day, we could save 200,000 gallons of water each day, or 5% of our daily usage in the City of Kingston.

• Consider using low flow fixtures and shower heads.

To augment the city’s water supply, crews have also begun the process of running temporary pipes to tap New York City’s Ashokan Reservoir.