BOULDER, Colo. The City of Boulder is currently under a drought watch, but officials said voluntary reductions as dry conditions continue could help avoid mandatory restrictions later this summer.While many surrounding cities h ave implemented their own mandatory water restrictions, Boulder has yet to do so.Drought and climate change have been incorporated into Boulder's planning efforts for many years. This year, we're relying on decades of planning to thoughtfully respond to drought conditions, City of Boulder water resources senior manager Kim Hutton said.According to the latest map from the U.S. Drought Monitor released Thursday morning, 82% of the state still remains under at least a "severe drought" level. That is down slightly from 86% from a map released on May 7.The City of Boulder is currently under a Drought Watch, but officials said voluntary reductions as dry conditions continue could help avoid mandatory restrictions later this summer.While it is dry this year, what's most noticeable is how historically hot it has been. So, we have a good sense of how hot, dry conditions will affect the amount of water available to the city. The biggest unknown is how our community will respond to the heat, Hutton said.The city said its reservoir levels are about average. Watch Sophia Villalba's report in the player below: Boulder hopes voluntary water cuts can avoid mandatory water restrictions later this summerRight now, our community's voluntary water conservation is expected to be impactful enough to get us through the dry period, Hutton added.The last time the city saw mandatory water restrictions was during the 2002 drought.The savings that we achieved during that drought response turned into permanent savings. Water use continued to decline for years after 2002, Hutton added. Our total water use is 30% lower than it was about 25 years ago. Residents like Wade Wimmer said many people in Boulder were expecting certain restrictions by now.I think Boulderites are behind that measure. It's going to be a bit of a shock, but I think they're used to it, or they're planning on it coming at least, Wade Wimmer, a Boulder resident, said.We're pretty confident that we can sustain the levels in the reservoirs and be sufficient to manage our water use over the next couple of years, Hutton said.City officials said about half of Boulders total water use goes toward outdoor irrigation, mostly for residential lawns and common areas.We have an HOA on a three-townhome complex. We've already addressed the issue, knowing that it's likely going to happen, Wimmer told Denver7.Officials are encouraging residents to reduce lawn watering while still prioritizing trees.My lawn is not going to look beautiful and pretty, but it'll still be there. I'm more concerned about the trees in my yard than the grass, Wimmer said.City officials told Denver7 one of the biggest lessons the city learned during the 2002 drought was about tree health.We implemented two days a week watering, and we limited it to 15 minutes per time, but what we saw was a lot of decline in tree health or tree death in the years following the 2002 drought, Hutton said. We learned a lot about the need for trees, and so we want to continue to maintain trees throughout the dry period. So, we're encouraging continued watering of trees.During the peak summer months, water demand in Boulder increases nearly three times what it is during winter.Officials said if water use rises during the peak summer heat, mandatory restrictions could still be considered later this season. They are hopeful that voluntary reductions will lead to a 10% savings across town. ...read more read less