Water District Mulls Water Supply Alert As Drought Worsen

LOS ANGELES, CA — Southern California water suppliers will consider declaring a Water Supply Alert Tuesday asking residents to voluntarily conserve water amid one of the worst droughts ever to hit the Golden State.

The move comes as water boards in Northern California have already instituted water use restrictions. According to Metropolitan Water District officials, conservation is vital to preserving crucial storage reservoirs, which are currently at all-time lows. The last time a drought brought a state of emergency to the state, then Gov. Jerry Brown instituted mandatory cutbacks to water usage. However, this time around, Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing a recall and has left unpopular conservation mandates to local water boards. If voluntary measures prove ineffective. Southlanders could once again faces mandatory restrictions. The Metropolitan Water District provides water to more than 19 million people across Southern California.

Metropolitan officials could later decide to take further action, including imposing financial penalties for excessive use on Metropolitan's 26 member public agencies and retail suppliers that provide water for 19 million people in six counties.

According to Metropolitan Water District officials, Southern California's water supply has been severely impacted by extreme drought in both the Northern Sierra and the Colorado River, saying crucial storage reservoirs have never been lower. As a way to safeguard storage reserves, the board will consider declaring a Water Supply Alert to stress the urgency of the region's need to save as many drops as possible. The action calls for water agencies and consumers in Southern California to voluntarily reduce usage.

The Los Angeles area is facing something of a perfect storm between the drought and problems at Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant, which normally can be relied upon to provide millions of gallons of recycled water. Los Angeles suffered a major blow to its water recycling ability following a massive sewage spill into the Santa Monica Bay last month. The spill reduced the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant ability to recycle wastewater, forcing the officials to divert millions of gallons of drinking water in place of recycled water, the Los Angeles Times reported.

On Monday, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation declared the first-ever mandatory water cutbacks for Arizona, Nevada and Mexico next year due to a shortage on the Colorado River. The federal government's declaration comes as Nevada's Lake Mead, the river's biggest reservoir, measures at its lowest level since the reservoir was created by the construction of the Hoover Dam in the 1930s.

Metropolitan General Manager Adel Hagekhalil said Lake Mead's low levels should be a wake-up call.

"The Colorado River is sending us a clear message: conserve, reuse and recycle," Hagekhalil said. "The river has been a lifeline for Southern California for more than 80 years. This shortage announcement moves the river into a new era and reinforces the need for Southern Californians to use less water to preserve this critical supply."

He noted that the next chapter in the history of the river must be "one of collaboration and historic action to stabilize a supply that is so vital to seven states and two countries."

Metropolitan's action on Tuesday urging conservation would also support Gov. Gavin Newsom's call last month for Californians to voluntarily reduce water use by 15% amid worsening conditions across the West Coast.

According to the governor's office, a 15% cut in water use would save 850,000 acre-feet of water -- enough to supply more than 1.7 million households for a year.

Newsom said residents have responded to drought conditions before, and he was confident they would take steps again to ease their water use. He urged residents to limit outdoor watering, use recycled water when possible outdoors, take shorter showers and only run dishwashers and washing machines when they are full.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.