Burbank meets billion-gallon water savings goal ahead of schedule

In response to Gov. Jerry Brown’s April executive order calling for statewide water conservation, Burbank met the billion-gallon challenge of water savings for the period of June to February.

Though the measuring period isn’t over, the city reached the goal after December, said Joe Flores, a spokesman for Burbank Water and Power.

Because the savings are being measured cumulatively, Burbank could lose ground if usage spikes in January and February, he added.

According to the latest statewide data released Tuesday by the State Water Resources Control Board, the city conserved 650 million gallons in the six months ending in November — a savings of 27.3% compared with the same period in 2013. Burbank’s state-mandated savings goal is 24% through February.

However, in November, Brown issued a new executive order that directed the state water board to extend through the end of October the emergency water-conservation regulations, which set a 25% target for urban water use statewide, if drought conditions were to hold through this month.

El Niño will probably bring some relief, but not an end to the drought, Flores said, which will likely mean Burbankers will have to continue their efforts to curb water usage. Experts don’t expect a single wet winter to end four years of drought.

“As welcome as recent rain and snow are, we’ve been in such a deep drought that we won’t know until spring whether we can let up on conservation,” Felicia Marcus, chairwoman of the State Water Resources Control Board, said in a statement.

A framework for the next version of the water-conservation order is out for public review. The water board’s staff will release a draft of the updated regulations in mid-January, and the board is expected to consider the measure Feb. 2.

So far, Californians have saved 26.3%, as of the latest report. In November, when officials said there is a typical drop in outdoor irrigation — the largest residential use of water — statewide water use was down 20.3% compared with November 2013, down from 22.3% in October.

That does not mean Californians are using more water. Average per-person water use statewide declined from 87 gallons per day in October to 75 gallons per day in November.

“We expected the percentage drop in the cooler fall and winter months, when we use less water in general, so we are still on track,” Marcus said. “The fact that per-person water use dropped to 75 gallons per-person, per day, on average, is proof that Californians are clearly thinking twice before turning on the tap.”

Unlike some area cities, Burbank has continued to meet or exceed its share of the conservation goal, not only for the whole period, but on a monthly basis. In October and November, it cut water use by 26% and 24%, respectively.

On a per-person basis, the average Burbanker used less than 87 gallons per day during the month, compared with 95 gallons per day for the same month last year. The number of complaints about water wasters, 150, in November was at its lowest since April, though the number of citations, 33, was the third-highest.

Glendale was ahead of its cumulative target of 20%, with a total savings of 23.8% for the six-month period, but the Jewel City only managed monthly savings of 16.4% in November, following cuts of 24.5% in October.

Water savings in nearby Los Angeles are also still slightly above the city’s cumulative 16% target at 17.1% as of November, though monthly savings in October fell just shy of 15% and in November were slightly more than 10%.

Pasadena, however, was not on track to meet its 28% goal, as of November, with a cumulative savings of 22.5% as of that date. Its monthly savings in October were at 20.8%, while its November savings fell to 15.4%.

Cities that fail to meet the state-mandated cumulative targets could face fines of up to $10,000 per day, Flores said.

Burbankers will need to continue to be diligent in their conservation efforts through February and beyond so the city doesn’t fall behind, he said, noting, “I don’t want to say this is a done deal.”

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Chad Garland, chad.garland@latimes.com

Twitter: @chadgarland