Drought is a natural climatic condition which has occurred many times in the past and which will occur again. The Crossville / Cumberland County Drought Contingency Plan is available in the office of Emergency Management. The Drought Contingency Plan is triggered by reductions in surface water allotment or by the inability to satisfy system water demand for any reason. The plan is triggered in stages based on allotment or when demand is projected to exceed supply. Each drought or water emergency stage is associated with a menu of response measures. Each successive stage from Stage I to Stage III represents an increasingly severe condition and includes an increasingly stringent list of response measures.

In the year 2007, the Cumberland Plateau received substantially less rainfall than usual, as is depicted on the following graphs…

Due to this marked decrease in rainfall on the Cumberland Plateau), the City of Crossville has mandated the following restrictions…

Mandated water restrictions include no outside watering, including decks, parking lots and driveways, vehicles, or grass. In addition, there’s to be no filling or cleaning pools. Violations can lead to warnings, fines, and even water shut-off. In addition, all residential and commercial customers are asked to further conserve and cut back on usage anywhere possible. To help conserve water, turn off faucets while shaving, washing hands, and brushing teeth, run only full loads in washing machines and dishwashers, and use garbage disposals sparingly. Don’t use running water to thaw food, shorten your showers, and fix leaky faucets and plumbing joints.

Crossville and Cumberland County get their water from several different sources. According to the State of Tennessee Appendix A, the allotment of water is as follows: The city of Crossville receives their water from Holiday Hills Lake and from Meadow Park Lake. The city then sales water to Catoosa Utility District, Crab Orchard Utility District, South Cumberland Utility District, and West Cumberland Utility District. The West Cumberland Utility District also receives water from Bon De Croft Utility District.

The Renegade Mountain Water System receives its water from Crab Orchard. Crab Orchard Utility District also receives water from the Otter Creek Impoundment. And, finally, the Cumberland Mountain Retreat receives its water from area wells.

The total number of customers served by the City or Crossville and Catoosa about 11,638 taps. The city has about 7,627 taps and Catoosa has about 4,011 taps. Crab Orchard Utility serves a total of about 7,530 taps.