California shames big water wasters
State names water departments that let scofflaw users slide.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California is done with gentle nudges and polite reminders to deal with its devastating drought.
State regulators are naming local water departments that have let water wasters slide — and forcing them to slash water use by as much as a third. They say it’s necessary as reservoirs, and the snow on mountains that is supposed to refill them, reach record lows.
The drought has no clear end in sight, but it’s up to hundreds of local agencies, from small irrigation districts to the city of Los Angeles, to make sure California has enough water to get through it.
Since Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought emergency last year, local agencies have largely taken a soft, educational approach to curtail water use. But that’s no longer enough, he says. Brown announced the first mandatory drought restrictions in California history last week.
State regulators have drafted plans that show how much each community has conserved and assigned mandatory water reduction targets of up to a third to each one. The highest targets are set for those that use the most water.
Los Angeles, which has a million more people than it did 40 years ago but uses the same amount of water, would have to cut its use by a fifth.
Ways of meeting these ambitious targets include increasing the frequency of water waste patrols, hitting guzzlers in the wallet with higher water prices and expanding incentives to rip up lawns for drought-tolerant shrubs and bushes. Those who don’t meet the targets or take steps to conserve face $10,000-aday fines.
State officials say residential conservation through turning off the sprinklers, taking shorter showers and doing less laundry is the most effective way to boost water supplies.