By Theresa-Marie Wilson

With the statewide drought showing no sign of relief, the Arroyo Grande City Council unanimously declared a Stage 1 Water Shortage Emergency, however the city is already more than halfway to its goals
A Stage 1 emergency was declared as a result of the ongoing severe drought conditions. Rainfall is 47 percent less than normal resulting in low Lopez Reservoir levels and consequent reductions in deliveries of water from the lake. Currently Lopez Lake is 37.1%.  At this time last year it was 53 % full.
Additionally, reduced groundwater levels are a continuing concern causing a reduction in groundwater pumping.
In April Governor Gerry Brown declared the first statewide mandatory water reduction order in California history that directed several state agencies, including the State Water Board, to take immediate action to safeguard the state’s remaining potable urban water supplies in preparation for a possible fifth year of drought.
The State Water Control Resources Board mandates are on the books and Arroyo Grande has to reduce potable urban water consumption by 28%. The overall goal is to cut state water usage by 25 %.
“The response from Arroyo Grande water customers has been positive,” said Public Works Director Geoff English. “They realize that we are in severe drought conditions, so they are very receptive and have responded already and reduced their water consumption by 16 percent to date. We need to do more, but there is an understanding by our residents that they need to continue to save more.”
Overall water usage still needs to decrease by 12 percent this year. Customers will be required to reduce water usage by a certain percentage compared to the same billing period the prior year. Customers will be notified of their baseline before the new restrictions go into effect.
“The challenge has been how the implementation will take place,” English said. We have had a number of calls from some concerned folks just making sure that they have the information so that they can comply.”
Customers will be assigned a baseline water amount determined by the amount of water used during the previous year’s billing period. Residential customers will be required to reduce consumption by a certain percentage based upon their billing tier: tier 1 (bi-monthly usage of 10 – 18 units) reduce by 10%; tier 2 (bi-monthly usage of 19 – 36 units) reduce by 20%; and tier 3 (bi- monthly usage of 37 units or more) reduce by 30%.
A unit is 748 gallons of water or 7480 per billing cycle, which trickles down to 124 gallons per day. About 1,000 gallons of water per month can be save by taking under five minute showers.
For those water customers who have already been diligent in their conservation measures, there will be no reduction requirements. Those whose use is 10 units or less will not have to decrease their water consumption, but must not increase their usage above their assigned baseline.
“Our lowest water use customers do not have to conserve anymore,” English said. “They just have to keep doing what they have been doing.”
Commercial/institutional customers with separate irrigation meter accounts will have to reduce water use by 25%.
“Our strategy was to provide our customers with water budget, and then they can use that water budget however they best see fit,” English said. “Some folks may conserve more indoors and some folks may conserve more outdoors. We are providing our customers with the flexibility. Many folks have invested substantially in their outdoor landscaping, so they will have an option on how to conserve their amount of water reduction requirement.”
Mandatory financial penalties will be levied on all water users who fail to reduce consumption in the percentages required, starting with a written notice of violation, followed by a $50 fine the second time, a $100 fine the third and concluding with a $200 fine, which the State Water Resource Board said could be up to $500.
“How we comply with the state’s mandate to reduce 25% is really up to each community,” English said.
One- time penalties may be waived by attending a minimum two-hour session of Water Conservation School, which will be conducted by the City of Arroyo Grande.
“It essentially will be a three to four hour class,” English said. “They can learn about conservation methods, learn about the city’s water supply and make sure that they have what they need so that they can meet their goal.”
Since the State Water Board adopted its initial emergency urban conservation regulation in July 2014, voluntary statewide conservation efforts have reached 9 percent overall – far short of the 20 percent Governor Brown called for in 2014. Californians reduced their water consumption by just 2.8 percent in February of 2015, the lowest figure since the initial tracking in July the previous year.
The good news is that from June 2014 through February 2015, more than 148 billion gallons of water have been saved compared with the same period in 2013 –enough to supply 1.99 million California residents for a year
On-going mandatory conservation measures are also in effect including restriction on the days that outdoor irrigation of landscaping may occur and certain commercial uses of potable water.
English recommend that residents take advantage of the city’s plumbing retrofit and cash for grass programs to recognize and immediate drop in water usage.
Another way to save is to conduct a self-audit of your irrigation system and ensure that the time is set properly.
“Many times the battery on an irrigation controller is dead, and it reverts back to the factory setting,” English said. “The factory settings are significantly more water than is necessary.”
For more information on mandates, rebates, as well as tips on water conservation, visit the Arroyo Grande/Pismo Beach sponsored Water Conservation website at https://www.thinkh2onow.com.