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By Abigail Roberts

Correspondent

STANFORD – While Lincoln County has received some rain since an emergency water shortage was declared, the City of Stanford is still asking residents to voluntarily conserve water.

“The rain has helped,” said Mayor Dalton Miller. “We’ve been able to maintain our water levels at the lake.”

As of Jan. 8, Lincoln County had received about 1.2 of rain so far in January, according to Kentucky Mesonet.

“So even though we’ve had water usage, it hasn’t depleted our water resources any further,” Miller said. “But we’re still in conservation mode.”

The rain has helped keep the problem from becoming a crisis, but the lakes are still in need of more. Since the lakes are in different locations in the county, even if the City of Stanford receives water, it doesn’t necessarily mean the lakes received the same amount.

“Our water levels have increased by approximately half an inch since Dec. 21,” Miller said on Jan. 8. “So we’ve seen a slight increase but not enough to be excited. We are still asking people to voluntarily conserve water. I’m just hoping people are listening.”

Miller said a water main break last week didn’t help the situation either, but luckily it was quickly fixed.

“We caught it quick and got the valve shut off and they got it repaired,” he said. “Kudos to the water department for working through the night when it was 20 degrees.”

Miller said the Stanford Water Commission and the City of Stanford are working together to come up with short term and long term fixes to the problem.

“The long term takes a lot of planning and a lot of money,” he said. “Short term is increasing the flow from Buck Creek.”

There are several ways residents and businesses can help conserve water including:

• fix any leaks promptly

• turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth

• limit showers to five minutes or less

• limit excess toilet flushes

• do fewer loads of laundry per week

• use a dishwasher

• restrict the washing of automobiles.

By following these guidelines, the public can help reduce water usage by 20 percent per each household.

The county did receive some additional rain overnight and on Jan. 9, which has helped, Miller said, adding that he hopes it continues.