PWD offering lessons on saving water
Free program on Thursday will assist with conservation
PALMDALE — Given the drought in California and across much of the American West, Palmdale Water District is offering an in-person lesson on the state of its water supply and water conservation.
The program, “Let’s Talk H2O! At Lake Palmdale with PWD,” will take place from 10 to 10:30 a.m. Thursday.
The program is free, but registration is required. Sign up at https://bit.ly/3cLZdPr. Although the event will be outdoors, the number of attendees will be limited.
Lake Palmdale is part of the District’s water supply, which includes State Water Project water from the California Aqueduct, Littlerock Dam Reservoir and groundwater.
In April, the District urged its customers to begin cutting back on water use by 15%, part of the first stage in its Water Shortage Contingency Plan.
This voluntary reduction was prompted by the extremely dry year, in which the District is slated to receive only 5% of its allotment of water from the State Water Project.
This amounts to only 1,065 acre-feet of water from the California Aqueduct, while the estimated demand is 22,300 acre-feet.
An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons, or approximately the amount of water a typical Antelope Valley household used in one year, before the most recent drought-reduced usage.
The District has enough in alternative supplies to make up the difference this year in the lack of State Water Project water.
“This year has been an arid year for California, and PWD is currently using reserve water supply to meet this year’s demands,” said Resource and Analytics Director Peter Thompson Jr., who will lead the discussion and answer questions during Thursday’s program. “While the supply is sufficient for 2021, we have to start thinking and planning for next year. If 2022 is similarly dry, it will further reduce the amount of available water supply across the state and to PWD.”
To help encourage water conservation at this crucial time, the District is offering rebates on high-efficiency toilets and washers, as well as several irrigation system upgrades.
It also offers up to $1,500 per household for converting to water-wise landscaping.
A free residential water survey is also available to identify possible leaks and other means to conserve at individual residences.
Visit palmdalewater.org for details on any of these programs.