PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — For the first time in six months, the Tampa Bay area is no longer in a moderate or severe drought, but water restrictions are still in effect.
Every single Tampa Bay County has extended its irrigation rules.
It comes as more people move to Florida and our reservoir levels remain low.
Eric Jackson is a resident of Tampa and loves taking care of his yard.
"Having nice grass is nice but not necessary," said Jackson.
Jackson said during the Summer months, it can get difficult.
"I do have a problem with trying to keep the ground moist enough in the grass so it doesn't start to discolor," said Jackson.
Even so, he's following the rules...watering his yard only once a week.
"Having a military background, I know how important that is for missions and so forth like that to conserve the water to be better used for other things,' said Jackson.
The current watering restrictions have been ongoing since December 1. The culprit? A very dry Summer.
"We are no longer in a drought as of February 29. A map is updated every week and the yellow color still means abnormally dry but we are no longer seeing a moderate or severe drought like we saw over the Summer months," said ABC Action News Chief Meteorologist, Denis Phillips.
Phillips said despite getting rain in January, the Tampa Bay Area still needs more.
"It isn't just how much rain we've had but maybe what we expect over the next two or three months and usually March, April and May are very very dry," said Phillips.
Even as the drought lifts, Southwest Florida Water Management District just extended the current water restrictions until July 1.
"We are still at a deficit of 7.4 inches, and that is the primary driver for this water shortage order," said Julia Palaschak with the City of Tampa.
Palaschak added population growth is another big factor.
"We've watched our daily demand grow by about four million gallons a day….We need to share our water resources with more people. The river is not getting any larger," said Palaschak.
But do people know about the water restrictions?
A new study from the University of Florida said not well enough, finding roughly half of Floridians are aware of their county's rules.
"With new customers coming into the area, it doesn't surprise me that there may be people out there who still don't know," said Palaschak.
That's why the Southwest Florida Water Management District is rolling out a new campaign called "Water 10" to help educate people about the issue.
"They will be able to see information on how to save water indoors and out," said Katherine Munson with the Southwest Water Management District.
Local water officials said it's beneficial to use a nozzle when watering your yard, that way you can stop the water when you want to.
According to the University of Florida, Floridians average nearly 1,000 gallons every outdoor irrigation cycle. That's equivalent to running your bathroom sink continuously for more than eight hours or your dishwasher 50 times.
Jackson is always looking for alternatives, like gathering rainwater.
"If you care about the community, you support the community in any way you can," said Jackson.
