WICHITA FALLS, Texas (AP) — Wichita Falls is adding another tool to try to deal with a dwindling water supply due to a persistent drought.
The North Texas city that provides water to about 150,000 people near the Oklahoma border is trying to reduce evaporation from one of the lakes that supplies water by adding a thin biodegradable layer to the surface.
Director of public works Russell Schreiber says the hope is to cut daily evaporation of 40 million gallons a day from Arrowhead Lake by at least 10 percent.
Schreiber says the 75-day pilot program is the largest of its kind. The lake is 6,000 acres.
It's yet another step for the city. Wichita Falls has instituted water restrictions and a wastewater reuse program and tried cloud seeding.
Arrowhead Lake is 22 percent full.