Tough Water Limits May Be Dissolved : Drought: Rains are filling Santa Barbara’s reservoirs and the city might ease restrictions on usage. Goleta might not need to import water from Canada.

With one reservoir full and the level in a second rising, city officials may now ease some of the toughest water restrictions found anywhere in California--including a ban on lawn watering that has been in effect for more than a year.

And in nearby Goleta, which had been considering importing water by tanker from Canada as early as next fall, officials say they now have more time to plan for emergency supplies.

“Our situation is not so desperate now,” said Nelson Evans, operations manager for the Goleta Water District. “These rains probably have given us another year before we have to consider Canadian water . . . and if it keeps raining we might not need it at all.”

Before the recent series of storms, Lake Cachuma, the primary water source for cities in the Santa Barbara area, was expected to go dry by the spring of 1992. But now that Cachuma has enough supplies for another year, water officials have “some breathing room,” Santa Barbara Water Commissioner Bendi White said.

Santa Barbara officials are still planning to build a desalination plant that will produce water by early 1992. But because of the recent rains, the city will not have to count on desalination as its primary water source next year.

“These rains probably saved us millions of dollars,” White said. “Producing water by desalination is extremely expensive. By comparison, reservoir water is virtually free . . . and now we have enough reservoir water to make a big difference.”

Last year, the water shortage in the city of Santa Barbara was the most severe in the county, and possibly the entire state. But as a result of the recent storms, Santa Barbara now is better off than its neighbors.

Gibraltar Reservoir, which serves just the city of Santa Barbara and traditionally provides about 30% of its needs, had been dry since 1989. But as a result of the recent series of storms, it overflowed earlier in the week.

The Cachuma reservoir, the primary water source for Santa Barbara, Goleta and neighboring cities, is much larger than Gibraltar and still is only about a quarter full. Although this is a significant improvement from last month--when it registered a record low of 14% of capacity--it still is way below average.

Water officials will not consider the drought over until Cachuma is half full--normal for this time of year--and they can resume regular water deliveries to cities. Cities in the Santa Barbara area are only getting 45% of their normal supplies from Cachuma.

“The drought is still far from over,” said Chris Dahlstrom, a hydrologist for the Santa Barbara County Water Agency. “It’s going to take a lot more rain to fill Cachuma to the levels we need.”

But at least there’s enough water so Santa Barbara residents can soon expect to revive their dying lawns, said White of the city water commission. And water rates, which are extremely high to encourage conservation, will probably be restructured, White said, so residents soon will be able to afford more water for landscaping.

But before any action is taken, city officials want to wait until the end of the rainy season in May, said Councilman Hal Conklin. By then, they will know exactly how much to ease up on water restrictions.

The rains have been particularly gratifying to landscapers, back-yard gardeners and nursery owners. Santa Barbara was once known for its lush gardens and expansive lawns, but during the past year, yards throughout the town have become dry and brown, landmark 100-year-old trees have died and flower gardens have withered.

The landscape industry has been reduced by one-third during the past year, said Martin Senn, past president of a local nurserymen’s association. And there has been tremendous unemployment among gardeners and field workers in the area.

But just in the last few weeks the flora has begun to revive as a result of the rains. The dusty brown hillsides have taken on an emerald sheen, desiccated lawns have begun to sprout new growth and dying shrubs have regenerated.

“Santa Barbara was starting to lose its reputation as a beautiful, lush place, and that was hurting the biggest industry in the area--tourism,” Senn said. “The rains and the loosening of watering restrictions will do a lot for the area.”

There was more rain Wednesday in the Santa Barbara area, and the Santa Ynez River continued to spill into Lake Cachuma throughout the day. Santa Barbara has almost reached its average yearly rainfall level--and most of the rain has fallen just in the last few weeks.

With more storms forecast, water officials in Santa Barbara, for the first time in more than five years, are optimistic.

“The hillsides are so drenched that all the rain now is turning into runoff and emptying into the reservoirs,” said Dahlstrom of the county water agency. “For such a dry year, it’s been an amazing turnaround. . . . These rains in March have been a tremendous help.”