The drought is here and it is now in its fourth year. As a result, Governor Jerry Brown issued a first-of-its-kind water restriction mandate that asked for the state to reduce its water usage by 25 percent. Since then, residents throughout the state and the water agencies that serve them have been doing their best to cut back on their water usage. Most agencies have already adopted guidelines to help people save as much water as possible. This is why we have published “Tips for Surviving the Drought in Palmdale” to hopefully help residents struggling with reducing their water usage while also complying with the enforced reductions required by the various water agencies.
The problem is that there is no one set of rules as each area has been divided into tiers and each of these tiers has a different amount of water they are required save. The formula used to decide which city and county falls into which tier is a little complicated, but if you want to know how much water your area is required to save, just contact your water provider. Of course, there are 27 different water agencies for the Palmdale area, so it can become a little confusing. If you are not sure who your provider is, you can go to the Regional Water Authority website and they have a list of the providers in the Palmdale area. Just click this link: http://www.rwah2o.org/rwa/programs/wep/contacts/. Your local provider will give you all the information and guidelines you will need to conserve water.
Though there are many different water agencies, many have very similar restrictions and most of these include major restrictions, specifically for outside water use such as watering or irrigating your lawn and landscaping. The agencies are also very concerned about classic water-wasting activities such as hosing down sidewalks and running a hose that doesn’t have a shutoff valve on it. The Palmdale County Water Agency, for example, has issued the following restrictions:
SCWA DROUGHT WATERING RESTRICTIONS:
Irrigation of outdoor landscaping that results in the runoff of potable water onto non-irrigated areas such as walkways and roadways is prohibited.
The use of potable water to wash driveways and sidewalks has been prohibited.
Residents cannot run potable water in a fountain or other decorative feature.
Outdoor watering using potable water cannot be done within 48 hours after a measurable rain.
The use of potable water for a residential and/or charity car wash fundraiser is prohibited.
Homes with addresses ending in even numbers can only water their lawn with a sprinkler on Sundays and they can use drip irrigation for their trees and shrubs on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Homes with addresses ending in odd numbers can water their lawns on Saturdays and drip-irrigate their trees and shrubs on Saturday, Tuesday and Thursday. However, it should be noted that no watering of any kind may be done between 6AM and 8PM no matter what day of the week it is.
Water Heater Storge and Your Water Heater GardenIn addition to these outdoor watering restrictions, eating and drinking establishments can only serve water upon request and motels and hotels are required to provide guests with the opportunity to not have their linens and towels washed every day. These last two have been widely used throughout the state for a while now. Again, these restrictions we just listed are for customers of Palmdale County Water Agency. To locate your water provider in the Palmdale area, click the link at the top of this article. Or, for more complete general information about the drought, go to the Regional Water Authority website at: www.rwah2o.org.