COUNTYWIDE : 2 Cities Vote to Lift Water Restrictions

The cities of Oxnard and Thousand Oaks have voted to lift mandatory water restrictions in favor of voluntary conservation programs.

The separate votes by council members in the two cities follow a decision by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to increase its deliveries of water.

The MWD was able to make more water available after the state Department of Water Resources announced in March that it will increase to 45% from 20% the amount of water it delivers to members of the State Water Project.

Up until last month, Thousand Oaks residents were required to trim their consumption up to 20% or face penalties on their bills.

The Thousand Oaks council relaxed those measures and, with the recent action, eliminated penalties completely. Donald H. Nelson, Thousand Oaks utilities director, said customers will be refunded for any penalties they might have been assessed on their last bill.

In Oxnard, in place of the present mandate to reduce water use by 15% compared with last year, the council voted unanimously Tuesday to adopt a plan that requires residents to voluntarily reduce water consumption by 5%.

The Oxnard vote followed a decision by the Calleguas Municipal Water District, one of 27 member agencies of the MWD and Oxnard’s main water supplier, to interrupt its conservation plan in view of the recent rains.

Oxnard council members said they were happy to be able to lift the restrictions. But, they added, residents will have to continue conserving because water is a limited resource and the population keeps growing.