THE DROUGHT CONSERVATION : Ventura Reports 22% Decrease in Water Use

Monthly water consumption in the city of Ventura has dropped nearly 22%, the first concrete evidence that residents are taking the city’s stringent water conservation regulations seriously.

The 21.9% reduction in water consumption between April 12 and May 11--while falling short of the overall goal of 30%--indicates that consumers are reacting swiftly to the crisis precipitated by four straight years of drought, City Manager John Baker said.

“It’s clear that the city’s residents perceive the need to reduce consumption, and that makes me happy,” Baker said. However, he refused to say how many gallons of water were used in either period because the information has not yet been given to the City Council.

Under the regulations, residents living in apartments, condominiums and mobile homes are limited to 196 gallons per day per household. Single-family houses are limited to 296 gallons per day, while businesses, farms and government offices must reduce consumption by up to 20%.

Baker said he was especially pleased that residents were cutting usage even before the program becomes mandatory June 12, when violators will face penalties of up to 10 times the normal water rate for excess use. The two-month billing period between April and June is considered an adjustment period, and no penalties will be assessed.

Baker also said he was pleased by figures showing that the city appears to be stepping up conservation efforts as time goes on. Between April 12 and May 1, he said, the city had cut consumption by 15% contrasted with last year. “But in the last couple of weeks, that number went up to 21%,” Baker said.

City officials were not certain who should get credit for the early success of the conservation effort. “We don’t know the breakdown yet--whether most of the cuts have come in commercial or residential users,” Baker said.

A full report on the cutbacks is expected at Monday’s City Council meeting.

However, there is a downside to the city’s apparent success in cutting water use, city officials said--water rates will inevitably go up.

The increase in the price of water will be about proportional to the reductions achieved in consumption, Assistant City Manager Lauraine Brekke said. If the city reduces use by 20%, for example, the water rates must go up by about the same amount because the cost of delivering water remains the same.

“If we are successful in reducing water consumption, unfortunately the bills will have to go up,” Brekke said. “It’s Catch-22.”

Brekke said the city staff will recommend rate increases to the City Council later this month. If approved, the new rates would take effect in August, she said.

This does not necessarily mean that Ventura residents will receive more expensive water bills, Councilman John McWherter said. “If you’re using less water to comply with the ordinance, then you end up paying the same that you did before you started saving water.”

Because the penalty phase begins June 12, the first bimonthly bills with penalties assessed for excess use will be mailed Aug. 12, said Carol Green, the city’s public information officer. Since there are eight billing groups, the last group on the rotation will not be charged for excess use until Sept. 12, she said.

Officials monitoring water conservation efforts statewide praised Ventura’s efforts and said they expect even more reductions as residents get into the habit of conserving.

“I commend the city of Ventura, and I expect the reduction rate to go up as people get adjusted to using less water and city officials fine-tune the ordinance,” said Bob Fingado, a spokesman for the Drought Center of the state Department of Water Resources in Sacramento.

He said the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District, which requires mandatory cutbacks of 20%, is achieving 30% reduction rates. Santa Barbara, which has the most stringent water conservation ordinance in the state, requires 45% cutbacks. Fingado said that city has reduced water consumption by 47%.

Chuck White, a spokesman for the southern district of the state Department of Water Resources, said the central coast “has been pretty good at restricting use of the little water they have left.”

Ventura City Council members contacted Friday said they were delighted to learn that the city had reduced water consumption significantly even though residents were not facing penalties for another month.

“Oh boy, that’s getting right up there!” said McWherter, referring to the city’s overall goal of a 30% reduction. “It’s wonderful that people are learning how to conserve; that makes me real happy.”

Mayor Richard Francis said he was “cautiously optimistic. There’s a long summer ahead of us, and it’s too early to claim victory.”