Santa Clarita Valley Water Committee members are looking to find a way to help the Santa Clarita Valley meet the newest water conservation and restriction mandates.
“This is all about developing a cohesive strategy, while still recognizing that each of the valley’s water suppliers faces its own unique set of challenges and circumstances,” said Mauricio Guardado, chair of the SCV Water Committee and retail manager of the Castaic Lake Water Agency’s Santa Clarita Water Division. “We’re working toward a common general approach to enforcement and achieving compliance, but each of the water retailers will adopt its own specific measures.”
Regarding enforcement, the water retailers entered Thursday’s session with a general sense of agreement on one basic principle: They don’t want to issue fines, but if they have to, they will.
“Our approach has and continues to be education first. That is our primary role as local water providers,” said Steve Cole, General Manager of the Newhall County Water District. “But this drought is serious, so we must collectively step up our enforcement CLWA Solarefforts as a region. That includes potential fines for those who are consistently out of compliance with State law.”
Last summer, the Water Committee — whose members include the four local water retailers, the Castaic Lake Water Agency, and city and county representatives — took the first step in that direction by agreeing on an action plan that prohibits water-wasting activities such as over-irrigation that causes runoff and washing down driveways and sidewalks, and imposed an odd-even system of irrigation days. The four retailers each then enacted their own specific conservation measures consistent with the agreed-upon action plan.
A similar process is under way now, with the Water Committee meeting today to address the state’s latest actions restricting water use.
As California’s record-setting drought continues through a fourth consecutive dry year, Gov. Jerry Brown issued an executive order in April calling for mandatory water conservation by all residents. The Governor directed that additional immediate actions be taken to conserve water supplies. In response, on May 5 the State Water Resources Control Board amended its emergency regulations to achieve a 25 percent reduction in overall potable urban water use statewide.
The emergency state regulation prohibits additional activities such as irrigating after it rains and mandates how much each water retailer’s customers must conserve. To achieve the statewide 25 percent urban water use reduction, the state adopted a nine-tiered system requiring water suppliers to achieve conservation levels ranging from 8 percent to 36 percent, with 2013 serving as the baseline year. Those suppliers with higher per capita water use were assigned higher conservation mandates.
In the SCV, the three largest retailers’ requirements are 24 percent for the Valencia Water Co., 28 percent for the Newhall County Water District and 32 percent for SCWD. Los Angeles County’s Waterworks District 36, which serves about 1,300 connections in Val Verde, is required to either achieve a 25 percent reduction or restrict irrigation to no more than twice per week under the state’s requirements that apply to small water suppliers serving less than 3,000 connections.
Keith Abercrombie, General Manager of Valencia Water Co., said, “The SCV Water Committee today is developing the blueprint for regulations that the retailers will individually enact in the days and weeks ahead. Along with enforcing prohibitions on water-wasting activities, the water retailers will be calling on their customers to aggressively conserve water; otherwise the water retailers will be subject to fines assessed by the State Water Resources Control Board of up to $10,000 per day.”
Each of the retailers will be developing the means to incentivize individual customer conservation. Because most of the water in the Santa Clarita Valley is used for outdoor irrigation, decisive action is needed now to reduce high summer water demand. Otherwise, achieving the conservation mandates will become impossible.
“All of the local water suppliers and their ratepayers have one big thing in common: We’re all being asked to do more, perhaps much more, to help ensure that California gets through this drought with its water supply intact,” Abercrombie said. “While we’re fortunate here in the SCV to have a diverse water supply portfolio and a significant amount of water in reserve, this drought is serious business for everyone in California, and the Governor expects all the state’s residents to comply.”
Information on each agency’s water conservation efforts, along with water-saving tips, can be found online at:
Castaic Lake Water Agency
Newhall County Water District
Santa Clarita Water Division
Valencia Water Company
About the SCV Water Committee:
The Santa Clarita Valley Water Committee, formerly known as the SCV Drought Committee, was formed in 2008 to bring multiple agencies together to jointly respond to drought conditions in the Santa Clarita Valley. The committee meets regularly to monitor water supply conditions and prepare actions that may need to be taken in the event of drought. Its members include Castaic Lake Water Agency, the City of Santa Clarita, Los Angeles County and the four local water purveyors: Los Angeles County Waterworks District No. 36, Newhall County Water District, Santa Clarita Water Division and Valencia Water Company.
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55 Comments
How about the homes on Valencia between Rockwell and McBean quit watering the street? That’s a start
Stop building more homes…
The city is putting all of its attention on us the homeowner. How about we take a nice walk around this city and I’ll show you what the city needs to do about itself and big businesses. The city refuses to comment on its own waste and how they look the other way when large businesses do it. My lawn is dead and I could water my yard fifteen times a day with the water runoff from vons at Lyons and Wiley every night. Grow up and stop blaming homes when you can’t step up and save water SCV!
Hear hear! Look at the hills surrounding our city, that’s what it’s supposed to look like out here. Stop forcing an oasis where there shouldn’t be one.
Hear hear! Look at the hills surrounding our city, that’s what it’s supposed to look like out here. Stop forcing an oasis where there shouldn’t be one.
How about stop putting in medians with water!
How about stop putting in medians with water!
Park sierra in canyon country and to top it off they water the grass at least 3 times a day rain or shine
Quit planting and watering in the medians, quit watering the parks and schools.
BS.. If they really wanted to conserve water they would not be building like crazy.
The woman down the block from me hoses down her driveway every evening, while my lawn looks dead because I’m following the rules. It drives me crazy that some people just don’t get it!
You can report her and she WILL get fined.
Maybe they should stop watering the concrete in Bridgeport
Stop watering the medians on plum cyn close to bouquet cyn the water doesn’t even make it to the plants last time I checked asphalt doesn’t need water every night at 8-9pm rain or shine.
Um.. Maybe not take out all the cement center dividers and put in plants and trees? I don’t think they are working to hard.
Should talk to corporations like nestle/coke/pepsi. Our bottled water comes from somewhere…..
And water parks like hurricane harbor… I love water too, but we’re in a drought & that’s a lot of water!
Right idea, but it’s technically not in Santa Clarita, so even if they wanted to, there is nothing they could do.
And water parks like hurricane harbor… I love water too, but we’re in a drought & that’s a lot of water!
Right idea, but it’s technically not in Santa Clarita, so even if they wanted to, there is nothing they could do.
How about you stop letting homes be built! DUH
How about you stop letting homes be built! DUH
Close down a golf course
Close down a golf course
I think the golf course uses recycled water. Why don’t you complain about football fields too? At least these are useful grass that support recreation and support wildlife instead of just decoration.
They should use astro turf,your right Wendy
Time to get rid of automatic flushing toilets and sinks in the restaurants, malls, stores, etc. We are all capable of flushing a toilet ourselves and turning a sink on and off ourselves. I always hear toilets flushing when no one is even in the bathroom and when someone is done washing their hands the water is still running.
Time to get rid of automatic flushing toilets and sinks in the restaurants, malls, stores, etc. We are all capable of flushing a toilet ourselves and turning a sink on and off ourselves. I always hear toilets flushing when no one is even in the bathroom and when someone is done washing their hands the water is still running.
Your right we don’t need more homes it’s too crowed now
Your right we don’t need more homes it’s too crowed now
Jimmy Grise for town president !
Jimmy Grise for town president !
So why did the city approve plans to build 25,000 new homes along the 126?
Stop growing Parsley and alomonds
Close your golf courses! I don’t think people realize how much water golf courses waste.
build build build…thats what I see
It would probably help to stop putting all new plants and bushes all down Soledad. We’re in a drought so we probably shouldn’t be wasting time and money (and causing so much traffic) to put it plants we can’t even water.
Stop the building until the drought is over.
I think the pressure by the state is on the cities required to save 25% or more in some cities. The city needs all residents to conserve till it hurts so they don’t have to work so hard to comply. You’ll know when you see the oblivious waste stopped that the city has not hit the mark required. Just wait and watch, cause it’s coming. Big fine on the city not the residents.! Keep reporting city waste!
Time to start reporting those that ignore the rules.
Time to start reporting those that ignore the rules.
I drove through yesterday and it looks like no one is paying a bit of attention to the new watering rules. From Lyons to Parker Road, every lawn or median was lush and bright green. On top of that I saw many flower displays with new plantings. I also drove down Mc Bean from the Old Road to Newhall Ranch Road and it was the same. You would think we were in the middle of an El Nino.
I drove through yesterday and it looks like no one is paying a bit of attention to the new watering rules. From Lyons to Parker Road, every lawn or median was lush and bright green. On top of that I saw many flower displays with new plantings. I also drove down Mc Bean from the Old Road to Newhall Ranch Road and it was the same. You would think we were in the middle of an El Nino.
I have an idea. Instead of building water delsationation plants, lets build a bullet train. Lame asses.
Maybe not build thousands of new homes when we dont have enough water for the community already!!
Maybe not build thousands of new homes when we dont have enough water for the community already!!
Reg Boczko Donovan Boczko Jr. Read these comments guys.
Reg Boczko Donovan Boczko Jr. Read these comments guys.
There is a large supply of water just west of here. It’s called the pacific ocean. A costal de-salt plant could clean up the water good enough for agricultural use. Run pipes up the river bed to supply all growers along hwy 126. Why not look into doing that? Or we could build a bullet train????
We live In The desert. Why do people fight nature and demand on having green grass.
You stop building and I will conserve.
OH My G
Yes to all the above, just drive down Soladad Rd all the center newly planted with plants and shrubs, but remember were in a drought, look at your picture of our lake, and by all means let’s add one more apt project or one more track of homes, and while we’re at it ripe more mountains down, whose the the ones abusing our water!!!!!!!!
How about leaving the concrete in the center medians. They do understand plants require water, right?!?!
Let the grass die and dye it green, if you want that look