15A NCAC 02E .0602      DEFINITIONS

The following definitions shall apply for the purposes of this Section:

(1)           "Council" and "NCDMAC" mean the North Carolina Drought Management Advisory Council.

(2)           "Department" means the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

(3)           "Drought Advisory" means an advisory issued by the NCDMAC that delineates the geographic extent and severity of a water deficit significant enough to have social, environmental, or economic effects. Drought Advisories shall be designated as Abnormally Dry, Moderate Drought, Severe Drought, Extreme Drought, and Exceptional Drought to indicate the severity of conditions from least to most severe, respectively.

(4)           "Effective" means producing the desired or intended result.

(5)           "Efficient" achieving maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort or expense.

(6)           "Efficient use" is reducing water wastage by measuring the amount of water required for a particular purpose and the amount of water used or delivered.

(7)           "Essential water use" means the use of water necessary for fire fighting, health, and safety purposes; water needed to sustain human and animal life; and water necessary to satisfy federal, state, and local public health, safety, or environmental protection requirements.

(8)           "Industry Best Management Practices" are methods that are the most effective and practical means of completing a task.

(9)           "Industry Standards" are a set of criteria within an industry relating to the standard functioning and carrying out of operations in their respective fields of production.

(10)         "Normal Operating Procedures (NOPs)" is a set of step-by-step instructions compiled by an organization to help workers carry out routine operations. NOPs aim to achieve efficiency, quality output, and uniformity of performance, while reducing miscommunication and failure to comply with industry regulations.

(11)         "Non-essential water use" means categories of water use, other than essential water use, that may be curtailed during droughts and water emergencies.

(12)         "Person" means any individual, corporation, company, association, partnership, unit of local government, state agency, federal agency, or other legal entity.

(13)         "Privately owned" are water systems that can be for-profit systems managed by investors or shareholders.

(14)         "Publicly owned" are water systems that are non-profit entities managed by local or state governments, for which rates are set by a governing board.

(15)         "State agencies" includes all agencies of the executive branch of the government of North Carolina, the General Assembly, the General Court of Justice, and the University of North Carolina.

(16)         "Syringing" means the application of 0.10 inch or less of water, near midday to correct plant water deficits, reduce plant tissue temperatures, and reduce the heat stress on turfgrass plants.

(17)         "Unit of local government" means a county, city, town, incorporated village, consolidated city-county, sanitary district or other local political subdivision, or authority or agency of local government.

(18)         "Water" means any waters of the State located on or below the land surface as well as water contained within a water treatment and distribution system.

(19)         "Water delivery system" means any open or closed conveyance system used to move water for potable or non-potable purposes from its point of origin to a point of use, including: municipal water systems; residential, commercial, industrial, and commercial plumbing systems; irrigation systems; water using equipment; and flexible hoses.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 143-354(a)(8); S.L. 2002-167;

Eff. March 19, 2007;

Readopted Eff. January 1, 2022.