Gov. Gavin Newsom urged aggressive actions on Monday among leaders from California’s largest urban water suppliers as the state stretches into its third year of severe drought.
The state warns that it will impose restrictions if local water authorities fail to meet conservation goals amid extreme drought conditions. The water agencies will meet in the next two months to provide updates on their progress.
“Every water agency across the state needs to take more aggressive actions to communicate about the drought emergency and implement conservation measures,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “Californians made significant changes since the last drought, but we have seen an uptick in water use, especially as we enter the summer months. We all have to be more thoughtful about how to make every drop count.”
Water agencies pushed for greater flexibility on water conservation after the last drought, calling for a tailored local approach to the crisis. A statement from the governor's office said Newsom embraced this localized approach.
The governor now voiced concerns given recent conservation levels around the state.
Newsom called on Californians to voluntarily cut their water usage by 15 percent in announcing a drought emergency in July 2021. The Water Resources Board reported in March that urban water usage increased by 19 percent.
The climate crisis has resulted in the western United States experiencing one of the most extensive and intense droughts on record. January through March was the driest first three months in the state’s recorded history.
According to Newsom's office, the state’s largest reservoirs are currently at half of their historical averages. California's snowpack is just 14 percent of average.
The State Water Resources Control Board will vote tomorrow on a statewide ban on watering of non-functional turf in the commercial, industrial and institutional sectors as well as regulations requiring local agencies to implement water use restrictions amid the possibility that water supplies may be up to 20 percent lower due to extreme weather.
That restriction is currently implemented on about half of California’s population. If the Board’s regulations are approved, every urban area of California will be covered by a local plan to reduce water use.
Banning watering of decorative lawns would save between 156,000 acre-feet and 260,000 acre-feet per year, the equivalent of water used by 780,000 households in a year, according to Newsom's office.
Californians are urged to take immediate action to avoid a crisis, including:
- Limiting outdoor watering – cutting back by even just one day a week can save you up to 20% more water.
- Take shorter showers. Going to a 5-minute shower to save up to 12.5 gallons per shower when using a water-efficient showerhead.
- Taking showers instead of baths – a bath uses up to 2.5 times the amount of water as a shower.
- Using a broom instead of a hose to clean outdoor areas saves 6 gallons of water every minute.
- Washing full loads of clothes to save 15-45 gallons of water per load.
