In the middle of June, 2008, the Edwards Aquifer Authority declared Stage 1 mandatory ground water restrictions when the level of the aquifer fell below 660 feet above mean sea level. On Monday, June 23, 2008, the average level for the previous ten days was measured at 659 feet above mean sea level. These water use restrictions were put into effect in Bexar and Medina Counties as a whole, and also applied to parts of Atascosa, Caldwell, Comal, Guadalupe and Hayes Counties. These regions were told to cut back water usage 20 percent.

The Edwards Aquifer serves nearly 2 million people in the Central Texas region. It is the major ground water supply system in this area of the state of Texas. The Edwards Aquifer Authority regulates the amount of water pumped from the aquifer which is the primary source of potable water for San Antonio.

The start of the summer was certainly looking bleak for central Texans in light of this declaration. Then, a scant month later, along came Hurricane Dolly. Dolly, which was downgraded to a category 1 storm as it made landfall in southern Texas, dumped between five and twelve inches of rain across a line from Laredo to Corpus Christi, effectively ending the drought conditions and prompting the Edwards Aquifer Authority to lift the water use restrictions.

Officials at the authority are still requesting that residents and businesses continue to conserve water usages on a voluntary basis in light of worries that the drought conditions could return later during the remainder of the summer season.