MMWD officials weigh permanent restrictions
Utility might lock in rules on sprinklers, pool covers
Some drought restrictions imposed on most Marin residents last year could become permanent, while others could be repealed in the coming weeks.
On Friday, the Marin Municipal Water District proposed keeping a twoday-per-week sprinkler irrigation limit in place for good but also rescinding some prohibitions to allow residents to wash their cars at home or refill their pools.
The debate on which rules to keep comes after the district and its 191,000 residents nearly faced depleted local reservoir supplies after two dry winters. But heavy downpours in late 2021 saved the county from the emergency by nearly refilling the district's seven reservoirs.
Now the district's board is trying to reconcile its water use restrictions with its ample reservoir supplies while at the same time recognizing the vulnerabilities of its two-year water supply.
“I am very, very nervous about the future,” the board president, Larry Russell, said on Friday. “I don't see a bright future for the drought side of things.”
On Friday, district staff proposed requiring residents to permanently limit outdoor sprinkler use to two days per week and using drip irrigation three days per week. Before the drought, the district limited outdoor sprinkler use to three days per week. Staff also proposed to permanently require pool owners to use a pool cover to prevent water loss
“I am very, very nervous about the future. I don't see a bright future for the drought side of things.”
— Larry Russell, Marin Municipal Water District board
from evaporation.
The sprinkler limit could save about 28 gallons of water per square foot annually while the pool cover could save between 3,000 to 9,000 gallons per pool annually, according to staff.
At the same time, staff proposed rescinding restrictions such as banning residents from washing cars at home; requiring golf courses to only water tees and greens; banning people from filling new or emptied pools; and banning the installation of new landscaping for new or expanded water hookups.
“Based on supply conditions right now, it's not necessarily warranted,” Carrie Pollard, the district's water efficiency manager, told the board on Friday.
These changes are set to go before the board for further consideration at a future date.
Golf courses in the district's service area make up about 2% of its average water use per year, according to Pollard. Amid the drought last year, golf courses had cut water use by nearly half, Pollard said. Under the proposal, golf courses would still be required to adhere to the two-day sprinkler limit.
The prohibition on new landscaping installation imposed last year has so far affected four water hookup requests. The estimated water savings from this is equal to about one-hundredth of a percent of the district's average annual water use, according to Pollard.
Board member Jack Gibson expressed concern about the district being too controlling on how residents use their water.
“There is a very fine line between being the water police and letting people have choices,” Gibson said during the meeting on Friday. “I'm very much for letting people have choices.”
Other board members disagreed, stating that the purpose is to cut back on water waste, such as pool water lost to evaporation.
The district is also considering whether to keep or reduce some of the water savings incentives it began offering last year. The district tripled its turf replacement rebate from $1 to $3 per square foot last year, with nearly $1.3 million in rebates provided for nearly 418,500 square feet of replaced turf.
To pay for this, the district had to dip into some of its reserve funds and would need an estimated $1.1 million to continue the program through this next year, Pollard said. Staff proposed a new approach to offer a rebate of 75 cents to up to $1.50 per square foot depending on whether the property owner agrees to install drought-tolerant plants on at least half of the replaced area.
Another proposal by the district that concerned local sanitary districts would require all sewer washing to use recycled water only except in emergencies. Pollard said the district would look to phase out the use of potable water supplies for this cleaning over time.
Sewage washing makes up about two-hundredths of a percent of the district's annual water use, according to staff.
Ben Horenstein, the district's general manager, acknowledged that sanitation agencies have expressed concerns about the “significant cost and impact on their routine cleaning” such as needing to truck in recycled water to job sites when normally nearby hydrants could be used.
Steve Moore, general manager of the Ross Valley Sanitation District, asked the board not impose this requirement on what is an essential health and safety measure and to work with water agencies on other water savings measures.
“I feel like we need to slow down a little bit before making permanent restrictions that were experimented with last year,” Moore told the board.