Georgia Bans Outdoor Water Use The Associated Press Friday, June 2, 2000; 2:43 p.m. EDT

ATLANTA  Because of a drought, Georgia's top environmental official Friday banned lawn watering and other outdoor water use from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week in Atlanta and the surrounding area, beginning Monday.

Many of the 15 counties covered by the order already have imposed restrictions because of shrinking water supplies.

"Droughts, like other natural disasters, require that we all cooperate in taking extraordinary actions to protect ourselves and our environment," said Harold Reheis, director of the Environmental Protection Division.

The ban will apply to all outdoor water-using activities, including watering lawns and gardens and washing cars. Vince Dollard, a spokesman for the state agency, said the ban could last through the summer and into the fall because very little rainfall is predicted.

The state last imposed such a ban in 1988.

Georgia and much of the deep South has been under drought conditions for nearly three years. Many municipalities and counties throughout the region have issued outdoor watering bans and restrictions.

State officials plan to convene a drought response meeting in Atlanta on Monday to examine the problem more closely.

) Copyright 2000 The Associated Press

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), June 02, 2000