One of Our San Diego Neighbors Uses Almost 38,000 Gallons of Water a Day

Despite receiving normal rainfall in the last year or so, we here in southern California have been trying to do our part to save water in a state that is experiencing one of the worst droughts in our history. So it is disheartening to read about one of our neighbors in Rancho Santa Fe who is using 13.8 million gallons of water a year.

            That comes out to almost 38,000 gallons of water a day. Almost 38,000 gallons a day! As our local paper, the Union-Tribune illustrates, that is enough water to supply the water needs of 110 single-family homes. The paper is leaving the name of the owner of the property unpublished.

            I can hear the argument, “Well, he pays for that water, so what is wrong with that?”

What could possibly be wrong with one southern California homeowner using almost 38,000 gallons of water a day?

The problem is that everybody else is paying for that water as well. We San Diegans are facing water rate increases, as much as 17 percent. Part of that increase would go to pay for the new water desalination plant in Carlsbad and the indirect potable reuse program, a plant and a program that would be unnecessary were it not for some folks using an enormous amount of water.

            The price paid by everybody else doesn’t stop there. We use pumps to bring water here from the Colorado River and the Sacramento River Delta, which uses energy. It is estimated that 20 percent of the energy used in California is to move water from one place to another. It also takes energy to desalinate water. That energy use translates into climate change.

            Maybe I shouldn’t grouse so much. The good news is that our neighbor has reduced his consumption of water down from last year’s 31.7 million gallons. I guess I should be thankful for that.

            How about you? What do you think when you read a story like this? Does it discourage you from conserving? Do you think there should be an upper limit on how much water one person or household can consume?

Governor Brown Issues Executive Order to Save Water

Our governor, Jerry Brown, has issued an executive order directing our State Water Resources Control Board to impose on all of California’s local water supply agencies a 25 percent reduction in their water use.

 

Drought stricken Oroville Lake, which is north of Sacramento. Now how you gonna float your boat? photo: Rich Pedrocelli Associated Press

Snowpack in the Sierras, which gives California about 30 percent of our water supply, is right now only about five percent of average. Yes, that’s right, five percent. That’s the lowest recorded level going back to 1950. Locally, here in San Diego, we’ve received about six and a half inches of precipitation for the year. Normal rainfall ranges from 10 to 12 inches a year, which usually falls from November through March.

The executive order leaves it to the individual agencies as to the manner in which they might achieve their water savings. Certainly most agencies will target gardens and lawns, which consume about 30 percent of residential water use. The New York Times says that water conservation measures may even have us skipping showers.

The order directs the state to work with local agencies to replace grass with drought tolerant landscaping. Left out of the executive order are large farms, which use a lot of water, although the owners of large farms will be required to give detailed water use reports to state regulators. A number of large farms have already seen their water allocations reduced.

So what do you think? Is this too drastic? Too little too late? Or has the governor done the right thing?