Gallons Of Water

Constellation Energy's two-reactor plant at Calvert Cliffs is set on a cliff overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, taking up about a fifth of a 2,100-acre former tobacco plantation that is now mostly a wildlife habitat for eagles, ospreys and deer. Its Unit 1 has been producing power since 1975, Unit 2 since 1977. Some 1,000 workers keep the plant humming. The plant's two nuclear reactors are housed in a solid concrete containment building in concrete structures that are designed to contain any heat or pressure or radioactive materials "in the unlikely event of a nuclear event," said Barbara Wagner, a spokeswoman for the plant.

Concerned about increased use of public water, Carroll County officials are calling for conservation from residents in South Carroll, the county's most populous and largest water service area. Officials want to exercise caution because daily demand for water jumped nearly 400,000 gallons to 2.6 million gallons during the week of May 23, which was unseasonably hot. Despite milder temperatures last week, usage has not returned to lower numbers. The county would like to maintain average daily use at about 2.3 million gallons.

Concerned about increased use of public water, Carroll County officials are calling for conservation from residents in South Carroll, the county's most populous and largest water service area. Officials want to exercise caution because daily demand for water jumped nearly 400,000 gallons to 2.6 million gallons during the week of May 23, which was unseasonably hot. Despite milder temperatures last week, usage has not returned to lower numbers. The county would like to maintain average daily use at about 2.3 million gallons.

At the About Faces Day Spa and Salon in Pikesville, women brought jugs of water from home so a stylist could color their hair. At Northwest Animal Hospital, a veterinarian used bottled water to operate on a King Charles spaniel. And at T.G.I. Friday's - the rare Owings Mills business that had water yesterday - a trio of teen-agers celebrated their unexpected day off from school. But for Tom Moser Jr., the water main break that left a large part of Baltimore County dry for a day was pure hassle.

Heavy rains last month filled rivers, streams, wells and reservoirs to capacity statewide and sent record amounts of water flowing into Chesapeake Bay, federal scientists said yesterday. An estimated 123 billion gallons of water flowed into the bay each day last month, the second-highest amount since recordkeeping began in 1937, according to the U.S. Geological Survey in Baltimore. The only month with higher streamflow levels was June 1972, when Tropical Storm Agnes flooded the region.

Talk about spring cleaning. Your cluttered basement and spotty windows are child's play compared to what Maryland Transportation Authority workers are tackling this month: They're scrubbing the 9 miles of tunnels that run under the Baltimore Harbor, from top to bottom and side to side. The Fort McHenry and Harbor tunnels are filthy. They have not been cleaned since August, when drought restrictions took effect. Since then, car exhaust, diesel smoke and road grime have turned the white tile walls a dingy brown and dimmed the bright ceiling lights.

A record snowfall is still gurgling down the drain. Maryland's streams are swollen, and the water is rising in rural wells. Almost 10 billion gallons of runoff has poured since the middle of last month into the Baltimore reservoirs shriveled by last year's drought. So why is it still a violation, under drought emergency rules imposed last year, for people using city water to turn a garden hose on their salt-encrusted cars? "We just don't feel safe enough to start to lift the restrictions at this point," said Robert H. Murrow, a spokesman for the city Department of Public Works.

From the restored 19th- century truss bridge at the edge of his 200-acre farm, Monroe Duke watches Deer Creek kick up a riffle of white water as it meanders past on its way to the Susquehanna River. Duke's farm is a few miles from the creek's juncture with the Susquehanna south of Darlington. In its nearly 40-mile course across Harford County, Deer Creek waters animals, fields and wells as it winds through parks, forests and farmland. The creek, about 2 feet deep on average and 80 feet wide at most, is home to diverse plants and animals, including rare bog turtles and one of the state's best-known shad runs.

It's not quite the deluge they wanted, but Westminster officials are grateful for the rain that has fallen in the past two months because they haven't had to truck in water for a month. For the first time since July, the city's main water supply is back to 50 percent of capacity. More than 7 inches of rain fell in Carroll County last month, compared with 4 inches in August. "It [rainfall] certainly helped us out and allowed us to buy time," said Thomas B. Beyard, director of planning and public works.

Business halted in a busy section of downtown Baltimore yesterday after one of the city's largest water mains burst Thursday night, dumping hundreds of thousands of gallons of water into two major office buildings and clogging traffic throughout the area. Utility crews worked to repair damage in the first block of St. Paul Street, where a 20-inch cast-iron pipe ripped open about 10 p.m. Thursday. The cause of the break was not known, but a city official said it might have resulted from ground movement during the seasonal change.