County Councilmembers Phil Andrews and Blair Ewing, who represent Montgomery County on the Board of Directors of the Washington area Council of Governments (COG), today hailed COG’s decision to establish stronger region-wide measures to respond to any future drought situation.
COG represents the governments of suburban Maryland and Virginia counties, as well as the District of Columbia.
"We are on the right track by emphasizing voluntary conservation from the very beginning, with voluntary restrictions once our reservoirs fall to 60 percent capacity," said Councilmember Andrews. "This commits the county and the region to encourage ‘wise water use’ as a matter of policy."
"This is an excellent plan and makes it clear we will all be on the same page this summer and in the future," said Councilmember Ewing. "I’m especially pleased that we agreed to call for voluntary water conservation at the earliest release from reservoirs.
"Water conservation needs a year-round emphasis. This plan also focuses on the need to insure that the Potomac River remains environmentally sound for the future. This is regional cooperation at its very best."