How often you water your lawn in Dallas may change next year. It’s part of a strategy for the region’s water supplier to not only conserve, but plan for expected increased demand for water in the coming decades.

For every drop we use, there are planners working to project how much water North Texas will need, not only next year but for the next half century.

Sarah Standifer is director of Dallas Water Utilities (DWU), which not only supplies water for residents in Dallas, but serves as a wholesaler for several smaller cities too over a 16-county region.

“Any amount of reduced use is really important,” Standifer said. “If we don’t conserve that water that we have today, it is the cheapest source we have.  So, you’re going to see that in billing in the future.

DWU provided an update to Dallas City Council on both short term and long term strategies to preserve water amid projected rising demand.

Dallas already added restrictions on time-of-day watering in 2012, limiting watering between 10am and 6pm from April through October.  It’s a strategy Standifer says DWU will recommend Dallas City Council adopt year round next spring.

“It’s really time to continue to extend that as we move forward and more people look at what you want to plant in your yards, really looking at some sustainable materials, low water usage,” Standifer said.

Long term, DWU says it is working with other water suppliers, including North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) and Tarrant Regional Water District to complete the Integrated Pipeline, or “IPL” which will help draw water from Lake Palestine, to meet water needs by 2040.

During the final city council briefing of the year, District 9 council member Paula Blackmon emphasized the city of Dallas will need to “drive the conversation around water in this region.”

“We need to conserve what we have now, because I don’t think we’re going to be able to build reservoirs like we’ve tried to in the past,” Blackmon said. “And so, we’re going to maybe need to change the way people use our water that are outside of our control.”