Conserving water has become increasingly important as Pennsylvania is currently in the midst of a statewide drought watch that began a week ago, Paul Ruskin, spokesman for the Office of the Physical Plant, said.

Max Gill, executive director of the State College Borough Water Authority, said a drought occurring at this time of year is unusually early.

"Typically we have more rain [by now]," Gill said. "We have our fingers crossed that it's not going to continue. As soon as leaves come out, trees take up a tremendous amount of water, and then it becomes more serious."

Gill said Pennsylvania is in only the preliminary stage of a drought watch, which is more of a "heads-up" to water companies and citizens to conserve water.

"There is a potential for a severe drought," Gill said.

Gill said there are many things students can do to conserve water.

"Students sometimes like to take long showers," Gill said. "The best advice is to make them shorter."

Gill said full loads should be put in the washing machine.

Also, when students brush their teeth, the water should be turned off, he said.

Ruskin said the state government, through the Department of Environmental Protection, declares what stage of a drought Pennsylvania is in at any given time.

He said the first stage, a watch, requires a 5 percent voluntary reduction of water use; the second warning stage calls for a voluntary water usage reduction of 10 to 15 percent; and the final stage is the "bad one," where you go into mandatory water reduction of 15 percent, he said.

Ruskin said the mandatory stage is enforced by municipalities imposing fines on residents. In this stage, Ruskin said, various departments on campus follow certain regulations on water usage.

"Let's hope we don't get to that stage," he said.

Ruskin said droughts lead to brown lawns, problems with campus landscaping and minimized water supplies.

He said Penn State has water-reducing showerheads, along with restricting devices installed in water lines, which help to reduce the amount of water used across campus.

"Every drop is precious to us," Ruskin said.

He said if students see any dripping faucets anywhere on campus, they should call the physical plant office's service desk at 865-4731 and report it.

Gill said the State College Borough Water Authority has been aggressive in cutting back on water usage, adding that the borough has cut 5,000 gallons a day recently. "We have been able to curtail our water use by fixing leaks in the system," Gill said.

Ruskin said it would take more than one or two heavy rains to take the state out of a drought watch.

"It will take a continuous wet spell to recharge the ground water," Ruskin said. "We would need an extended period of time with good heavy rain showers."