CAMARILLO : City to Mail Notices on Saving Water

Camarillo’s 50 largest water users will be notified by mail this week that the city has passed a new ordinance outlawing waste of the dwindling resource.

“It’s just a polite notice with a copy of the ordinance,” said John Elwell, director of community affairs. “We’re just reminding them not to waste water.”

Similar letters will eventually be sent to the city’s motels, restaurants and landscapers, he said. In all, the city will notify about 250 businesses.

The ordinance prohibits lawn watering between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., except for new landscaping, and bans washing down sidewalks or driveways. Also prohibited is watering anything from grass to agricultural fields in such a way that water pools on hard surfaces or runs to waste.

In addition, water may be served in restaurants only on request, and fountains must use recycled water.

Violators will first be warned. Further violations will result in penalties ranging from half the previous bimonthly water bill to the installation of water flow reducers, Elwell said.

The city’s largest water user, 3M, an adhesive products manufacturer, consumes an average of 5,464,000 cubic feet of water a month, Elwell said. Told Properties is second with an average of 3,516,000 cubic feet a month, and the California Youth Authority is third, averaging 2,508,000 cubic feet a month, according to Elwell.