SC water utility imposes restrictions due to drought. How much more will you pay?

As the Grand Strand and Pee Dee counties continue to face a severe drought, the Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority is imposing new water usage restrictions that go into effect Wednesday.

The water utility company is activating its drought management plan, which lowers the number of gallons customers can use before additional charges are incurred.

Traditionally, Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority customers can use 8,000 gallons of water per month before the cost per 1,000 gallons used increases. Under the drought management plan, customers can only use up to 6,000 gallons of water before seeing additional costs for excess use.

Customers will pay $1.59 per 1,000 gallons for the first 6,000 gallons of use. After that, the next 1,000 gallons, up to 7,000, will incur a rate of $1.75 and $1.92 usage rate for up to 8,000 gallons. Prices will continue to increase with greater water usage.

Local municipalities that bill customers directly but use water from the Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority can decide whether or not to impose the restrictions on their customers, Christy Holder, the CEO of Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority, said.

The City of Myrtle Beach issued a release Tuesday stating that the drought measures will apply to city customers. “Customers who conserve water and stay below the 6,000-gallon threshold will avoid the excess usage charges,” the release said.

North Myrtle Beach did not respond to The Sun News’ request for comment prior to publication, but has previously asked residents to follow voluntary water usage restrictions.

Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority has compiled a list of ways customers can conserve water, including inspecting plumbing for leaks, spending less time in the shower and only running the dishwasher when it is fully loaded. Customers are advised to schedule irrigation outside of the hours of 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.

Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority had been encouraging customers to conserve water and modify their irrigation patterns in recent weeks, but drought conditions continued, and utility officials did not observe a change in water usage behavior.

With the Fourth of July coming up, and more water expected to be needed for potential fire protection, it felt like the right time to impose tighter water usage restrictions, Holder said.

“Our concern is to protect our customers and to ensure that we have adequate water supply, not only for potable use, but also for fire protection,” Holder said.

There is not currently a clear timeline for when the water usage restrictions will be lifted, as it is dependent on the area seeing more rainfall and less dryness.