A water shortage emergency announcement was made in California on Tuesday. The board of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California declared a water shortage emergency and is requiring certain cities and water agencies it supplies to implement the cutback on June 1 and enforce it or face hefty fines.
“We don’t have enough water supplies right now to meet normal demand. The water is not there,” district spokesperson Rebecca Kimitch said. “This is unprecedented territory. We’ve never done anything like this before.” The restrictions apply to some areas of Los Angeles, Ventura, and San Bernardino counties. These areas rely mostly on state water supplied through the district. The affected areas are primarily urban.
Nearly 26 public water agencies receive the supply of water from the Metropolitan Water District. The water reaches approximately 19 million people or 40% of the state’s population. Water comes from the massive storage and delivery system of the Colorado River and the State Water Project. However, record dry weather has put a strain on the system. It has brought down the reservoir levels. On the other hand, the State Water Project has estimated that it will only be able to give around 5% of its normal allocation for the second year in a row.
“The goal of the limitation on using water for grassy yards, plants, and things such as cleaning cars is to save water now for indoor use later in the summer when water use increases,” Adel Hagekhalil, the general manager said on Wednesday.
Households will be allowed to use 1,646 gallons per day
According to the Metropolitan Water District, the last couple of years saw the lowest rainfall on record for two years in a row. Furthermore, Lake Oroville, the main reservoir for the State Water Project reached its lowest point last year since the 1970s. Governor Gavin Newsom has requested households across the state to reduce their water consumption by 15% voluntarily. However, many have been hesitant to respond. Water conservation techniques have been implemented in a number of water districts.
Households will be allowed to use 1,646 gallons per day far above the average household usage of about 200 gallons daily.
“If the local agencies fail to meet the reduction goals they will be fined up to $2,000 per acre-foot of water”, Metropolitan Water District Chief Executive Officer Deven Upadhyay said Wednesday.
If the limitations don’t work, the Water District might order a total ban on outdoor watering as early as September.
Meanwhile, state legislators have taken the first step toward decreasing the water usage standard in residences. The current California indoor water use standard is 55 gallons per person each day. The state Senate decided this week to reduce the threshold to 47 gallons per person per day, starting in 2025. It would further come down to 42 gallons starting in 2030. The bill is yet to be passed. It will most likely take months to become law