Governor Jerry Brown and top water regulators last week laid out a revised plan for dealing with California’s drought. Assignment reporter Mike Lipsitz explains what this means for us here in the Morongo Basin…
The governor’s executive order bans permanently some wasteful practices like hosing off sidewalks, washing cars with hoses that lack shut-off nozzles and irrigating lawns so that water spills onto pavement. At the same time, Governor Brown and regulators give communities more say in their own conservation goals. Despite the wetter spring experienced in much of the state, the changes should not be interpreted as an easing of water restrictions. Joshua Basin Water District General Manager Curt Sauer described it as making water conservation a way of life, as opposed to a temporary condition. At Bighorn Desert View Water Agency, General Manager Marina West said, “We continue to encourage all residents to use water wisely.” Since last year, the state’s overall urban use has dropped nearly 24 percent compared with 2013. Water users in Joshua Tree cut water consumption by more than 35 percent.
STATE WATER CONSERVATION RULES REVISED, LOCAL DISTRICT’S GET MORE SAY
