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Welcome to The Turf Zone podcast. This episode features a message for VTC members from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

Written by Kati McCall, Water Supply Planner, Office of Water Supply, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality

We are reaching out on behalf of DEQ’s Water Supply Planning and Analysis team regarding the Virginia Water Withdrawal Reporting Regulation (9VAC25-200).1 This regulation requires users withdrawing groundwater or surface water in Virginia to report annual water withdrawals if withdrawals exceed 1 million gallons per month for crop irrigation purposes or 10,000 gallons per day for all other purposes (300,000 gallons per month). Users that fall below these thresholds or are otherwise exempted from the regulation are encouraged to report voluntarily.

Water reporting data provided through the annual reporting process allows DEQ to better understand how water use throughout the Commonwealth impacts surface water and groundwater resources, evaluate whether current water sources can meet future needs, and protect beneficial uses. Water reporting data for 2026 is due to DEQ no later than January 31, 2027. In preparation for the 2026 reporting cycle, our team is conducting an initiative to increase registration of agricultural facilities across the Commonwealth through the distribution of targeted outreach materials.

Water reporting data is considered in the development of regional water supply plans2 (required by 9VAC25-7803) and in the water withdrawal permitting process, which includes a simulation of total reported water use within the watershed. Increased availability of water reporting data from agricultural facilities may facilitate more accurate long-term planning of water resources by informing regional water demand projections for agriculture. Additionally, agricultural producers may benefit from reporting annual water withdrawals; a few potential benefits are:

Increasing efficiency: comparing current withdrawals to reported withdrawals can provide insight into potential issues at the facility by identifying periods of unusual use (e.g., line breaks, leaks, and other water loss)

Drought awareness: users who report withdrawals are notified when the Virginia Drought Monitoring Task Force4 establishes or expands drought advisories affecting their region, and as new drought-related tools developed by DEQ become available

Documenting use: reporting annual water withdrawals is the best way to document use for the facility (e.g., when applying for a permit)

Planning for the future: calculating and reporting annual water withdrawals may help users to predict and plan for future water needs (e.g., when expanding operations)

We are hoping to partner with the Virginia Turfgrass Council, given your extensive network of agricultural producers, to increase awareness of the annual reporting process and potential benefits. Would you be willing to assist us with this initiative by sharing these targeted outreach materials with your network (e.g., through inclusion in an upcoming newsletter)?

Outreach materials are available on DEQ’s Agricultural Water Use Resource Center webpage5, including the Annual Water Withdrawal Reporting Agricultural Brochure6, the Water Estimation Tool for Agricultural Withdrawals7, and the Water Withdrawal Dashboard8. Folks may contact the water supply planner serving their region9 with any questions regarding the annual reporting process or associated outreach materials.

Please let us know if you have any questions by calling (804) 350-4079.

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