The Indiana Department of Environmental Management, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, have issued a Water Shortage Warning for 32 Indiana counties that continue to be severely affected by the prolonged drought.

The warning was issued Monday, July 2, to operators of public water systems in the norther one-third of the state, including Kosciusko, Elkhart, Fulton, LaGrange, Noble, Marshall, Whitley and Wabash, and to encourage them and the communities they serve to begin voluntary conservation efforts. Communities listed in the warning are being asked to reduce water use by 10 to 15 percent.

Additionally, the warning serves as a trigger for public water systems to “immediately develop and update water shortage contingency plans for their respective systems, where such plans are not already available for implementation.”

The hope is that such an effort will forestall a mandatory water use restriction. According to the DNR, a water shortage warning is the second most severe stage of drought advisory. A water shortage emergency is the most extreme condition.