California IN BRIEF : SACRAMENTO : Cut Water Use 10%, Deukmejian Orders

Gov. George Deukmejian ordered all state agencies and departments to curtail water use by at least 10% to leave more for farming and firefighting. “As bad as things are in the state this year, we must also prepare for the possibility of a fifth straight year of drought,” Deukmejian said in his weekly radio address. “If we do not conserve this year, next year we may have more severe water rationing, higher water prices and increased adverse economic and environmental consequences.” His executive order directs department managers to seek ways of saving water, such as repairing leaks, limiting landscape irrigation, limiting washing of state cars and windows, eliminating washing of sidewalks and driveways and turning off decorative fountains. The drought, now in its fourth year, is expected to hurt farmers, particularly in the southern San Joaquin Valley, and cause losses in wildlife, fisheries and water-oriented recreation, he said.