Weatherford staff forecasts stage‑1 drought and plans to pump from Lake Benbrook in August

City utility staff presented a water-system update that included historical drought context, recent lake-level data and modeled projections intended to guide short-term operations and drought response.

Rick Schaffer summarized long-term climate variability and Weatherford’s reservoir history, noting Lake Weatherford was built during the 1950s statewide water‑planning response. He showed daily lake-level data (available back to 2003) and a frequency analysis that indicates the lake is commonly below full pool: "on average, the lake is about 3 feet low 50% of the time," Schaffer said.

Using model runs based on recent conditions, staff told the board they expect to enter stage 1 drought conditions in July and to begin pumping from Lake Benbrook in August. Schaffer explained the decision follows the city’s pumping-reserve policy and noted that in August the city will likely take advantage of its tier‑1 allocation from Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD).

Board members probed the cost implications and contractual terms. Staff described Weatherford’s long‑standing contracts with TRWD that make the city a full‑needs customer; Schaffer said tier 1 supplies (about 5–30 acre‑feet; staff phrasing in the meeting) are available with pumping costs only and could keep pumping costs under $50,000 in a year if the city remains within tier 1. He cautioned that moving into tier 2 or tier 3 would carry significantly higher charges and that in a previous high‑use year (2013 or 2014) the city paid roughly $1.8 million.

Schaffer also reported reclaimed‑water results: the city returned about 1,000,000,000 gallons to Lake Weatherford last year and withdrew about 2,000,000,000 gallons for customer supply — roughly a 50 percent return ratio, he said, while noting that evaporation remains a large summertime draw.

Schaffer said staff will present more detailed climate forecasting next month when a meteorologist from TRWD, Courtney Jalbert, appears before the board. "In August, we'll start pumping from Lake Benbrook," Schaffer said, summarizing the operational expectation.