Sonoma County, Healdsburg officials in California unveiled new restrictions on water due to extreme drought conditions.
These restrictions include limiting individuals to 74 gallons a day and ordering sprinklers and drop irrigation systems to be shut down immediately, reported KPIX CBS SF Bay Area News.
Healdsburg relies solely on water from Lake Mendocino, which is down to 39% of capacity. As a result, outdoor sprinklers and drip irrigation have been banned and residents are being rationed to 74 gallons of water per person per day. There are no backup water supplies for the town as well.
Due to no significant rain showers forecasted for several months, Lakes Sonoma and Mendocino, which are vital sources of water, are at their lowest levels ever for this time of year.
In the North Bay, water agencies in three counties, Sonoma, Marin and Mendocino, held “Drought Drive-Bys.” This entailed handing out water-saving kits to residents to reduce water usage, reported KPIX CBS SF Bay Area.
Santa Rosa agencies are asking for a 20% cut in water usage as they wait on how much Russian River water the state will allocate to them.
“As soon as we know for sure what that number’s going to be, we will implement the appropriate stage of our shortage plan,” said Jennifer Burke, director for Santa Rosa Water, reported KPIX CBS SF Bay Area.
Some of the Healdsburg mandatory water restrictions include:
- Residential Customers are assigned a water budget of 74 gallons per person per day;
- Commercial Customers are required to reduce water usage by 40%;
- Automated irrigation, sprinklers or drip, is prohibited for all residential, commercial and industrial customers;
- Hosing driveways, hardscape areas, power washing, and washing personal vehicles are prohibited;
- Planting new landscaping or grass is prohibited;
- Hand-watering is allowed so long as it’s within water allowance;
- Use of hoses to clean driveways, hardscape or personal vehicles is prohibited;
- And there are fines up to $1,000 per day for violations.
Water officials also advised customers to purchase a Flume smart metering device, reported KPIX CBS SF Bay Area.
