Education failed, so Calif. gets tough on water wasters
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Determined to erase its spotty water conservation record, the wealthy coastal community of Newport Beach is among the communities that are preparing to crack down on water guzzlers and wasters in response to California's worsening drought.
Cities statewide are facing increased pressure to slash water use after Gov. Jerry Brown last week ordered a mandatory statewide 25 percent drop in urban water use compared with 2013 levels. The move came under some fire, with critics saying it both came too late, and it wrongly excludes the state's biggest water users: farmers.
The State Water Resources Control Board on Tuesday will start discussing how to enforce that mandatory reduction, which will likely include cutback targets for cities based on how much water their residents already use.
Brown called on residents to voluntarily cut water use by 20 percent when he declared a drought emergency in January 2014. Californians only hit that target once - in December - prompting stronger action by Brown.
The board on Tuesday will also issue its monthly water use report card for February, following the driest January on record.
Statewide conservation has been about 10 percent, with some communities exceeding 30 percent. Communities such as Newport Beach, which cut average monthly water use by 5.5 percent between July and January, face fines if they do not take steps to conserve.
Several other wealthy California communities are not working as hard to match the restrictions as Newport Beach, reports CBS News correspondent Omar Villagranca. An UCLA study found wealthy neighborhoods use three times more water than other Southern California cities.
In Beverly Hills, for instance, water wasters are not ticketed. Residents have only been asked to turn off decorative fountains and stop hosing down driveways "voluntarily," measures that don't get them close to the new state-wide mandate of a 25-percent reduction.
In Orange County, the well-heeled are making their own concessions to the new normal. For example, some are using scuba divers to fix cracks and leaks in their pools, so they don't have to drain the water first.
Newport Beach already limits lawn watering to four times a week, which is double the state recommendation, and prohibits residents from refilling their pools more than 1 foot a week. Still, since July, Newport Beach residents used 124 gallons a day, compared with 100 gallons a day for other residents who live along the south coastline.
After months spent "educating" residents about what days they can water lawns and how much water they use, Newport Beach officials are seeking new authority to slap fines and have been sending out hundreds of warnings.
"We liked the friendly approach, and it seems to be working well, but we aren't afraid to issue citations," said George Murdoch, the city's utilities general manager.
The water board has given local water departments discretion to come up with their own conservation rules, but has set some statewide rules such as banning lawn watering 48 hours after rain and prohibiting restaurants from serving water unless customers ask.
The agency is also going to direct local water departments to charge customers in a way that penalizes overconsumption.
Newport Beach is already limiting residential water consumption to a residence's three-year average before the drought emergency. Customers have received written warnings for years if they went over the average water use, but will start getting fined later for going over this year, Murdoch said.
Water use is expected to increase this summer as tourists and seasonal residents flood into beach homes. Those guests and visitors haven't been exposed to the same conservation outreach as Californians, presenting an extra challenge in cutting back water use.
"I get it we aren't as low as the state average, but we're still heading in the right direction," said Murdoch, noting a 22 percent drop in water use in January.