Bog Meadow Reservoir, which supplies water to both Highland Falls and Fort Montgomery, is down to 40 percent capacity, Mayor Joe D’Onofrio said. With that information, he is asking that all community residents do their part to conserve water.

“The whole Northeast is in a drought,” the mayor said Monday, “we all know it hasn’t rained in a month, or maybe it’s longer now.”

While there are no ‘mandatory’ water restrictions, he is asking that residents do not use water outdoors – washing cars, watering grass, etc. – and “please be careful inside too,” he said. Simple ways to conserve water indoors includes running the dishwasher or washing machine only when full, fixing any dripping faucets or toilets that run, taking shorter showers, and turning off constantly running water while brushing teeth, or doing dishes by hand.

“We know that this is not the rainy season, and it’s not the snowy season yet, so we have to be a little careful,” he said, adding that the status of the reservoir is being monitored every day by workers from VRI, the private contractor which handles the water system.

The Hudson Valley, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, is “abnormally dry” at this point, with some areas in a “moderate drought”.

In one other Water Department matter, the mayor said a significant number of Highland Falls residents received cards last week asking them to read their indoor water meter and call either Village Hall (845-446-3400) or the Water Plant (845-446-3252) to report that number. Receiving one of the cards means that the home’s meter was not able to be read remotely.

Deputy Mayor Jim DiSalvo reported that many meters are beginning to fail and will likely need replacement. He said village officials are beginning the process of getting estimates on newer technology to replace the water meters with, but added that replacing 1200 meters is a big expense. “We’re looking at phasing in new meters by replacing the ones which don’t work initially and following up with the rest of them.”

It is important to call in your water meter reading, DiSalvo said, or you will be given an estimated reading.