Flying over Wichita Falls is an exercise in visual monotony. Brown. Everything is brown. The lakes are empty. The grass is dead and the trees are dying.
So, for city and university officials, managing the drought has become part of the daily routine as have the increasingly harsh restrictions placed on area residents.
Wichita Falls city officials have outlined restrictions for its residents and these are the same guidelines university housing follows according to Michael Mills, director of housing and dining services.
“We don’t only conserve water, we also put emphasis on utility conservation and try to make sure the students utilize what’s needed without being wasteful,” Mills said.
Vice President of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management Keith Lamb said since stage 4 restrictions were imposed, he is mainly concerned about MSU’s image to potential recruits.
“The chief concerns are perception and the upkeep of the campus. Students moving to Wichita Falls to attend MSU typically live on campus. To this end, the quality of life on campus is not likely to substantially change with stage 4 restrictions,” Lamb said. “The concern, though, is the perception of being in a drought emergency to those we recruit from other areas.”
Although Lamb has concerns regarding perception and first impressions about the campus, he has faith the admissions team will do its best to diminish any negative feelings about the appearance of the university grounds.
“I think the new welcome center will help with this to some extent. We do not have specific actions to take if the campus vegetation does suffer at this point in time,” Lamb said. “We will consider options over the winter months so we are prepared once the spring arrives.”
Lamb said there is no data to say whether or not the lack of rainfall has affected enrollment, but he feels that it hasn’t.
Nor has it had any effect on the day-to-day activities of students. Lamb said students still have access to showers, food services, and all the same amenities that exist during times of sufficient water. However, Lamb went on to say he does have concerns for the effect of the decreasing water levels on enrollment.
“My concern revolves around the image. This would project outwardly to other areas of the state that are not in a similar rationing situation,” Lamb said. “This could prevent our effectiveness in having individuals looking at MSU.”
However, the drought has had an impact on other areas of campus. During stage 3 drought restrictions, Athletic Director Charlie Carr said the fields were being watered less frequently by the student athletes. Even with all the efforts to keep the grass suitable for play, he said the playing surfaces still weren’t at their best.
“The drought has affected us for the past few years and as the years go by it just builds and builds, it’s also affecting our playing surfaces,” Carr said. “Our worst-case scenario is that we’d have to find new places to play.”
Kyle Owen, associate vice president of facilities services, said approximately 10 years ago, several wells were dug on campus to water the athletic fields.
Owen said last spring the university began installing a pumping and distributions system to utilize the two wells on the athletic fields. The system, which cost $77,000, was completed in the summer.
“The quality of water and the amount of production out of the wells were considered too low to justify using them for irrigation purposes,” Owen said. “But with the increase in water fees and the unavailability of city water due to drought restrictions, it became more worthwhile to use two of the more productive wells to water the sand-based football fields.”
Owen said the university submitted a water authorization permit to use some of the water from Sikes Lake to irrigate the competition softball and soccer fields. He said in the fiscal year of 2012, the university’s water use was 45 percent more than in 2013 due to conservation efforts and much less irrigation.
“We’ve quit planting. If a plant dies we don’t replace it,” Owen said. “The drought has even kept us from putting pansies around the monuments, a normal practice that we can’t do this year.”
When the city entered stage 3 in the spring semester, campus housing saw the drought as a threat and launched a public awareness campaign to inform students.
“In addition, we cannot water any vegetation during stage 4 so the lawns, shrubbery, and trees are in jeopardy if we do not receive rainfall,” Lamb said. “A campus with dying [or] no vegetation is not a good first impression to have on recruits.”
“We are continuously evaluating systems to see where we can save additional water,” Owen said.
The university has been proactive in its water conservation efforts for the future. Owen said many water-rationing installments have been made over the years including low-flow showerheads, hands-free water faucets and waterless urinals.
“The water used in university housing is strictly used for water dispensers, showers, toilets and sinks which are part of basic life functioning so there is not much conservation that can be done,” Mills said.
Owen also said the university’s water consumption abides by every restriction imposed by the city, and said the university would join the city in eliminating all outdoor watering should it enter stage 4. Since Wichita Falls entered stage 4 on Nov. 16, it’s more important than ever to consider all the options to conserve water.
According to Randall Hallford, associate professor of physical chemistry and board member for the re-mix water treatment program, the water proposed for use is already processed as well as any water retrieved from a reservoir. So the water brought into the city from the lakes is laden with bacteria, nitrates, salts, minerals, and solid matter. What’s unique about the reuse water is that it will be easier to treat and there will be an adequate quantity to work with.
“All drinking water is derived from wastewater,” Hallford said. “Every drink of municipal water is processed from the reuse water of the city above it.”
“It will be safe, cheaper to treat and readily available,” Hallford said. “All these reduce our cost and distress in a drought.”