Governor declares drought over but permanent conservation rules to come.
After one of the wettest winters on record, Gov.
The governor’s executive order maintains the drought emergency for sites still desperate for deliveries of drinking water, including Fresno, Tulare, Kings and Tuolumne counties.
This long-term framework for water conservation includes everything from minimizing pipe leaks, to requiring water suppliers to develop drought contingency plans, to submitting monthly data, to meeting permanent conservation targets.
“This drought emergency is over, but the next drought could be around the corner,” Brown said in a statement.
“It’s a wake-up call that we can’t hit the snooze button on.” The governor’s new order directs the state water board to lift conservation targets on water use for California’s 400 urban water agencies so those suppliers no longer have to show they have enough inventory to last through three straight years of drought.
However, urban suppliers will have to continue reporting water-use data as the state rolls out permanent and the customized water budgets, which will likely include separate indoor and outdoor targets.
“We are reviewing the governor’s long-term water-use framework released today,” said Mark Muir, board chair of the San Diego County Water Authority.
Since the governor declared the drought emergency in June 2015, residents and businesses have saved a total of more than 846 billion gallons of water.
Daily per capita use is now down to 133 gallons.