While your lawn may look brittle and feel a bit crunchy, rest assured it’s just summertime in the Lehigh Valley.

City officials say water rationing out west, with dry river beds and a receding Lake Meade, and reports of emergency drought conditions in Europe and Asia, are not cause for alarm locally.

Water Authority Executive Director Stephen Repasch said water levels remain high, even during dry spells, and that an Aug. 1 test showed levels in the city’s Pocono-area watershed are above normal for this time of year.

Director of Water and Sewer Resources Ed Boscola explained. “Currently there is no official drought watch or conservation measures recommended for eastern Pa. There is no concern at the present time regarding reservoir levels for the Bethlehem system. Precipitation for 2022 so far has exceeded 2021 year to date in the Pocono region, primarily due to the wet spring.

“We are currently at around 98 percent capacity as of [the] end of July.”