Undrinkable Water May Go to Center’s Lawn

Struggling to meet Ventura city water restrictions set up because of the drought, the county wants to reactivate a well at the Ventura County Government Center to irrigate the expansive lawns there.

If the Board of Supervisors approves the county’s request today, officials hope to begin pumping nearly 2.6 million gallons of water each month for lawn maintenance starting next month, officials said.

Last summer, the county exceeded its water limit by nearly 2 million gallons because employees at the center failed to cut back on sprinkling the 46 acres of landscaping.

The county needs at least the 92 million allotted gallons of water to run its other facilities, including the jail and hospital, said Arnold Robles, deputy director of the county’s facilities and grounds.

Even without watering its lawn, the county’s facilities exceed city limits on usage by about 4,500 gallons, Robles said. Water pumped from the well would not be available for drinking because of its high salt content.

In a meeting between city and county officials last week, Robles requested that the county’s water allotment be increased but said he does not expect a favorable reply.

Under the water conservation ordinance, in effect since April, government agencies must reduce water use by 20%. Private enterprises such as oil or food companies are required to reduce use by 15%.

Carol Green, spokeswoman for the Ventura city Department of Public Works, said the city will review the request for a higher allocation and check its meter readings against the county’s. But she would not say whether she believes it likely that the county will be allowed more water.

Reactivating the well, adjacent to Telephone Road at Victoria Avenue, would cost the county about $25,000. The well would be capable of producing about 265 gallons of water per minute, Robles said.

In May, the Board of Supervisors approved a study on reactivating the well site. Also, Supervisor Susan K. Lacey said she believed the board today will approve the well’s use because “it’s cost-effective as far as maintaining the landscape and at the same time cutting down on the drinking water the city provides.”

She added: “This is not going to relieve us from being responsible conservers of water. This is just a piece of it. We still have to do everything possible to be sure we’re good citizens.”

The county’s quest to preserve the government center’s lawns is both aesthetic and financial, Robles said. Several thousand dollars have been invested in the area’s 4,000 trees, he said.

“Let’s assume we do solve the water problems in the city of Ventura,” he said. “We would like to be able to have the trees still here instead of removing them because of a lack of water and having to plant new trees or something else.

“Of course, human consumption takes first priority. . . . But right now the water is not potable,” he said, adding that it would be too expensive to make the well water suitable for drinking.

The county last used the well about seven years ago to irrigate the landscaping but the pump drew too much sand and caused the irrigation system to deteriorate and leak.

If reactivated, the well would be fitted with a smaller pump to restrict the flow of sand, Robles said. Landscape architects have urged that the county monitor the soil to ensure that it does not crust from the amount of salt extracted.

While the city and the Fox Canyon Groundwater Management Agency have restrictions against drilling new wells, reactivating the well at the government center would not violate those guidelines, officials said.

Robles said use of the well could continue beyond the area’s drought.

“If the plants and everything we irrigate thrives on it or exists on it. we probably will keep the well operating as long as it does not interfere with the city’s watering system . . . as long as it’s not potable, he said.”