KYLE, Texas (KXAN) — The City of Kyle is in its first week of stage three water restrictions, and its assistant city manager said “dozens” of residents and business owners are not following the rules of water conservation.

Kyle recently moved to stage three restrictions starting on Sept. 1 because its three water suppliers saw a drop in water levels from the lack of rain this summer. The city is currently in discussions with the city of San Marcos to purchase water for its residents.

The biggest limitation for residents in the amended stage three restrictions is the amount of times they can use irrigation systems. The city will only allow businesses and homeowners to use their sprinkler system twice this month, but it appears some do not know the rules.

Spreading education

The city’s water department is patrolling the area and looking for anyone who is not following the rules. In the first week of September, no one is allowed to use their sprinkler system. Jerry Hendrix, the city’s assistant city manager, said dozens of people were seen not following the rules, but that number could be in the hundreds.

“The instinct people have is it gets hotter and gets drier my yard starts getting brown, I need to water more. We can’t be pouring valuable, potable water onto yards,” Hendrix said.

Right now, the city is pushing education. Hendrix said they are giving people the benefit of the doubt and giving them a warning. The goal is to only write citations to people who are repeat offenders, Hendrix explained.

A citation in the city of Kyle can cost anywhere between $500 and $2,000.

Hendrix said the water department is the only city department doing patrols, but there are talks of including other city departments, like Kyle police.

A different story in Cedar Park

Officials in Cedar Park said in the past its residents and business community have successfully followed water restrictions, and it expects that to continue moving forward. The city recently moved to stage three watering restrictions this week.

Its restrictions are less strict than the city of Kyle. It is also patrolling the city to make sure residents are complying with the new rules. The city encourages its residents to sign up for its digital metering portal so they can track how much water they are using.