Newport
With the Department of Environmental Services officially declaring an end to the drought for Sullivan County, which began last summer, and the Selectboard having lifted the mandatory water restrictions, the 1,500 users on the town’s water system can be reasonably assured of an ample supply this summer.
Meanwhile, the town is continuing to work on finding an additional well so it will be better prepared the next time a drought hits.
Josh Worthen, superintendent of the town’s water department, said the water over the dam began in April, something that had not happened since last summer when the town imposed voluntary water restrictions, which were made mandatory in October.
“Severe” drought conditions for much of Sullivan County existed well into 2017, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor website but those conditions no longer exist.
In December, when the town decided not to flood the common for ice skating, the level below the top of the dam was three feet and the depth of the water over the intake for the water plant — normally about eight feet — had dropped below four feet.
The town began using a well in Pollards Mill more so than usual to make up for the loss in Gilman Pond.
Worthen said the town is in discussions with DES to install “flash boards” on the dam, which would raise its height, thereby retaining more water.
Town Manager Hunter Rieseberg said on Wednesday they are continuing to negotiate with property owners in North Newport to dig test wells.
The effect of the drought was somewhat predicted in a 2009 study by an engineering firm that looked at demand, storage and distribution of the system.
The study said the town could not meet DES’s standards for average daily use if the main source went offline, nor could it meet maximum daily demand. A severe drought, it said, could adversely affect the capacity of Gilman Pond.
The town’s last new well was dug 50 years ago.
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
