Local water district installing flow restriction devices on water wasters
More than 6 million people are now under tough new water rules, as California's devastating drought drags on, and at least some water districts are already starting to enforce their new guidelines.
RELATED: Watering restrictions go into effect throughout Los Angeles
The hunt is on for water wasters in the Las Virgenes water district.
"We're being impacted in such a higher degree," Steven Baird, with the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District, said.
Every drop of water in the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District travels 400 miles to residents' faucets, so officials have amped up patrols for those who might be unwittingly or uncaringly wasting water.
"We're looking for water in the gutters and water coming out of the curbside drains,' Baird said.
It wasn't hard to find. Even though Wednesday was supposed to be a non-sprinkler day, there was plenty of evidence of water usage. Some sprinkler heads were still bubbling. There was water on the sidewalk and even the smell of wet lawns.
A home in Westlake Village had clearly let their lawn go, but the drain in front of the home was coated in algae, a sign of a leak that they might not know about. So, the homeowners will get a door hang notice asking them to take a look at the issue.
"Every single day, a little bit more, a little bit more and the next thing you know, it's thousands of gallons," Baird said.
The biggest offenders are easier to spot by their water bills, which was why on Wednesday, the district also started installing flow restriction devices that cover the pipe and reduce the flow of water to just a trickle.
Flow restriction devices are being used to target homes that have used more than 150% of their water budget for four months and haven't responded to calls or thousands of dollars in fines.
"We sent all of them a message, a voicemail, a text, an email to let them know this is happening," said Mike McNutt with the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District. "Your irrigation systems are not going to be able to function. The water coming out of your faucets at home is going to be minimized. Your shower is going to come out as a trickle. So, it's not going to be a lot of fun or pleasant for people, but this is the only thing, this is the last effort that we can to get people's attention to say we're serious about this and, more importantly, this is a serious drought that everybody has to do their part.
Twenty of those door hangs landed on people's front doors five days ago. The district told CBSLA that 11 of those homeowners did contact them, they signed a pledge, they booked an appointment to have them come and look at their water usage to help cut it down so that they did not receive the flow restriction devices.
However, nine other homes did have the flow restriction devices installed and officials will have another 20 on their list for next week.
Those who find themselves with a restrictor placed on their pipes will have to suffer the consequences for 14 days, before officials will return to remove the device. If anyone attempts to remove that device, they faces fines of up to $2,500.
"It's not punitive, this is to get people's attention. To say, 'The drought is serious, we need to be part of the solution," McNutt added Thursday. "Everybody should know that what they do or don't do impacts somebody else, because water connects all of us together."
At a display of the restrictor's capabilities on Thursday, held at a volunteer house in Calabasas, when the homeowner attempted to turn the sprinklers on they only received a trickle of water. Faucets and shower heads still ran at a normal capacity, since they are used for health and safety purposes.
