He Keeps His Powder Dry in War on Water Waste

A few drops of December rain have not brightened the bleak water picture in Los Angeles.

Nearly all of the city’s water falls as snow in distant mountains. And a fifth straight winter of drought has begun in the mountains of Northern California.

That means more pressure to conserve. Water conservation is the law in Los Angeles--10% voluntarily now, perhaps mandatory by next summer. Leaks must be fixed, and any deliberate waste is prohibited.

Anthony Marufo, 43, is on the team of Department of Water and Power advisers who drive city streets looking for violations. The so-called “drought busters” patrol in Ford Escorts bearing the city seal, and the citations they write can lead to fines.

Fluent in English and Spanish, Marufo has worked in Hollywood, Koreatown, South-Central Los Angeles and the East Side. Drought busters also carry information pamphlets in Korean and Chinese.

Until May, when the drought buster program started, Marufo was a customer service representative for the Department of Water and Power, his employer of 17 years. He works out of a brick, circa 1925 DWP building in the downtown warehouse district. Its entrance was used as the police station on the television series “Hill Street Blues.”

Q: The city forbids lawn watering during the day. Is that what you mainly look for?

A: That’s only part of it. We’re all assigned territories that we patrol. We look for hosing of sidewalks, walkways or parking areas. Watering the lawn between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. is a big one. People say, “Why do you pick on me between the hours of 10 and 5?” That’s when the highest rate of evaporation occurs. Also, any leak that is on the property is the owner’s responsibility to repair. That includes leaking anti-siphon valves for sprinklers, hose bibs, anything that leaks. Runoff from lawns and yards is another big thing. Or excessive watering.

Q: Say you spot somebody flouting the law. What then?

A: That’s our opportunity to get out and talk to them. Conservation is just the elimination of waste. Our job is an educational job; it’s not a confrontational job. Say I see somebody washing their car with a hose. It’s not illegal to wash a car. But if your hose does not have a nozzle or some kind of device that shuts itself off when you lay it down, I’ll go over and apprise you of the fact that you are wasting water. And I’ll hand you a nozzle. We’ll give it to you free of charge. It’s an opportunity for us to talk to you. We’re accepted very, very well because we have something to give you. People at least listen to us.

Q: How do people react when you walk up and say “I’m from the Department of Water and Power and you’re getting a citation for wasting water”?

A: Most of the time they’ll tell us “Ohhh, I forgot.” Or “Oh God, I know better but believe me I forgot.” So it’s an opportunity for us to review with them what the ordinance calls for. They’re usually very cooperative. Especially now that we’re into the “fine phase.” Monetary fines after the second violation. Money always grabs people’s attention.

Q: How do the fines work and how big are they?

A: If we see someone in violation they will be cited. Each drought buster in the Metro area--this side of Mulholland--is writing about five citations a day. We have to allow them a reasonable amount of time to repair the leak. A reasonable amount of time is considered 72 hours to fix a sprinkler valve, a hose bib, a main line leak. Anything on the property side of the meter is the owner’s responsibility to repair. The second violation is $50, the third one is $100, and the fourth could be $150 and a flow restrictor installed on the property. It restricts the flow of water to one gallon per minute. We’re up to third violations now.

Q: Who is responsible for paying?

A: Whoever pays the water bill. If a tenant can’t get a hold of the owner, we’ll allow more time. On a weekend we allow more time. We work seven days a week. Plumbers are not very sympathetic--they are still charging the weekend rate. We caution people to use some common sense. We tell people, “If you can’t have it repaired, give us a call.” Maybe the contractor is busy, or your plumber is busy, or you can’t find parts. The program is not to gouge the people. It is to further the conservation of water.

Q: Do you find that people resent you?

A: We get a lot of flak--that we’re an arm of the government. We just tell them that the people they elected, the ones who created the ordinance, are the ones that we work for. We say “It’s government of the people, by the people, remember that”? And they say, “Oh yeah, I remember--I don’t need a lecture.” Then I say “well let’s talk about this, let’s talk about conservation.”

Q: And they are mostly cooperative?

A: Some say, “Go to hell, I’ll pay for the water.” Those are the individuals that we take our time with. A lot of them come around to see that conservation is not only saving water it is saving money. A lot of people don’t equate that--conservation saves money. But a leaky faucet can cost $1 a day.

Q: How hard is it reduce water use by 10%?

A: If a household is really in tune with the spirit of water conservation, you’re going to be saving 20%. It’s sooo easy to do 10, it’s really easy to do 20. That’s why we say, “Save water, it’s easier than you think.” All you have to do is just think about it for a minute or two. Shorter showers. Turn that faucet off when you brush your teeth and you shave. Put a displacement device in the toilet tank, or change to a smaller tank. You can use the commode with less frequency. This is not to deprive you of your lifestyle. This is just to remind you that there’s a way to use less water.

Q: In addition to violations the drought busters spot, are people reporting violators?

A: We’re stopped on the street all the time to report leaks. Neighbors call us. Tenants are reporting landlords left and right. We’ll move on them right away. We’ve also seen the flip side: when the owner has complied, but the tenant is working against him. Sometimes we’ll find the tenant out front watering because he wants the place to look nice. He’s doing a disservice to the owner. In that situation we’ll use common sense. The DWP tells us not to intervene in landlord-tenant disputes.

Q: Do the drought busters patrol at random?

A: You can see what goes on just about every day because you’re going up and down the streets. There’s a correlation in the city of Los Angeles between trash day, gardeners, and wasting water. If the trash is being picked up Friday, the gardener will try to come Thursday or Friday morning. That way he can put the yard debris and clippings in the can and they will be taken away, so his boss--the homeowner--doesn’t have a can full of clippings all week. We look for trash day, and then talk to the gardeners.

Q: So gardeners are not allowed to hose off driveways or water plants?

A: Washing off walks and driveways is a violation. Watering is allowed between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. for professional gardeners. But he must have a current business tax certificate, in his possession, to be deemed a professional gardener. About 50% of them have it. If the gardener hasn’t paid his fees to the city, or isn’t on the property while the sprinklers are on, the owner gets a citation.

Q: Do most gardeners know about the water conservation ordinance?

A: They know. A majority of them know. They’ve gotten away with it for years. A lot of them will just admit to us: “Oh, man, you caught me.” But some complain. They say, “Oh, here’s another arm of the government that’s coming after us.”

Q: What’s the worst case of repeat violations that you know of?

A: I’ve only seen one case so far. It was a hose bib that someone had kicked and damaged at a commercial building on the South Side of town. There was a constant flow of water, creating runoff on a main thoroughfare. These people grew hopeless. They thought fixing it would involve breaking up the sidewalk, new stucco, a lot of plumbing. They just let it go and let it go and let it go. They got up to a third violation. We worked with them and it turns out a handyman could repair it.

Q: But do most people know the rules?

A: It’s amazing what the public knows. They know a lot more than they let on. A lot of times they can quote chapter and verse from the ordinance--after they get caught. They say, “Yeah, yeah, I know.”

Q: So does reminding them work?

A: The program is simple: gentle persuasion, relentlessly applied.