SAN DIEGO COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : Ending the Water Double Talk

It’s about time.

Today, the San Diego County Water Authority is expected to do what the city of San Diego has thus far refused to do: Establish mandatory water conservation rules.

The CWA, as middle agent between Southern California’s water wholesaler, Metropolitan Water District, and the 23 local water agencies, will be considering an ordinance to establish uniform rules throughout the county.

This should bring some clarity to the water double talk that has given San Diegans a false sense of security for years.

Unfortunately, the rules will be more drastic than they would have had to be if the Water Authority and the MWD had taken more action in the third or fourth years of the drought.

The rules that the County Water Authority are considering today are aimed to reduce overall water consumption by 50%, the amount that water deliveries to the county will be cut.

Watering lawns would be prohibited; ground cover needed for fire protection or to stabilize slopes could be watered once every two weeks. Trees and shrubs could be watered by hand or by drip irrigation.

Generally, new swimming pools and spas could not be filled. And there would be limits on carwashing, golf-course watering and new water hookups.

San Diego Mayor Maureen O’Connor continues to hold out hope for rain and voluntary compliance. She says recent rains should reduce the 50% goal, and she favors dipping into the city’s 11- or 12-month reserve to make up the difference between the 30% cutbacks she says can be achieved voluntarily and the actual cutbacks needed.

Dipping into the city’s reserves at this time is ill-advised. What if the drought continues into six or seven years?

If more rain comes, then perhaps the CWA can revise its targets. But until then, a mandatory, countywide water plan is needed. And this plan is reasonable, given the severity of the crisis.