New Data Show That Residential Water Use In Gaspingly Dry CA Averages 500+ gpd In Some Areas

[hatrack]

New monthly water use data for California water utilities shows that residential water use varies widely around the state, and that the response to the drought has been uneven. Moreover, in some areas, residential use averages more than 500 gallons per person per day, indicating that we could be doing much more to save water.

In July, the State Water Resources Control Board, or the Water Board, issued an emergency regulation to increase water conservation in urban areas. The new regulations prohibit certain water uses, like washing driveways and sidewalks, and imposed new restrictions on outdoor irrigation. Additionally, water utilities are now required to submit monthly reports on water use, including a comparison to how much water was used during the same month in 2013. Last week, the Water Board published the latest monthly water use reports for 397 urban water utilities. While a handful of utilities failed to report on time, those that did report cover about 99% of the state’s population.

Each water utility reports per-person water use in terms of gallons per-capita per day or “gpcd” and the portion used by residents in and around their homes. The result is a first of its-kind compilation of monthly water use data for urban water utilities in the state. And while officials cautioned that many factors affect water use, these data, displayed on the map below, reveal a number of interesting patterns and trends. Click on a utility’s service area to view a chart of residential water use, and how it compares to the same month last year, and to the average use for the state and its Hydrologic Region.

EDIT

Perhaps the first thing you notice is the large range in reported water use. Residential water use in September 2014 ranged from a low of 45 gpcd in Santa Cruz to a high of 584 gpcd in areas served by the Santa Fe Irrigation District in San Diego County. Water use tends to be lower in the cooler coastal region, and in denser, urbanized areas. Likewise, water use tends to be higher in hotter, drier regions, and in suburban areas with more outdoor landscaping and lawns. The chart below highlights utilities with the five highest and lowest residential per capita water use rates in the state.



EDIT

http://www.californiadrought.org/new-data-show-residential-per-capita-water-use-across-california/

[enough]

1. We surely all, wherever we live, have to be conscious of our residential water use,

and we also need to be informed simultaneously about the volume of water being used in our areas by fracking, when we live in states affected by that.

Not at all meaning to say that residential use is not important. It certainly is. But it would be interesting to have the different uses juxtaposed.

[NYC_SKP]

2. Exactly. We don't need desalination plants; we need water meters and tier rates.

We need to charge more for homes that use more water, it's as simple as that.

We need to reward conservation and punish waste.

My new home is near Santa Cruz and there's a virtual building moratorium, thank goodness, due to water shortages.

Meanwhile, other places in the state don't even meter the water used by homes.

We need to start metering use, STAT, and charging more per CCF or gallon, as total use rises, much as is done with electric power charges.

50 gallons/day/person seems reasonable. Charge 50% more for the next 20 gallons, and exponentially more beyond that.

At some point warnings should be written and then I would consider civil fines for water waste or water hoarding.

Fuckers.

[Nihil]

3. Totally agree.

If you are wasting 500 gallons per person per day then you should be fined heavily PER DAY
for every drop over the "reasonable" limit (and 50 is not a particularly low one so that counts
as "reasonable" in my book).

[NYC_SKP]

4. Tucson, AZ, has progressively higher rates, though not nearly punitive enough.

A few other cities also have tiered rates, but most do not.