A new regulation approved by California's State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) last week is going to hit some cities a lot harder than others, with water suppliers in the Golden State's Central Valley facing the biggest cuts.
The policy, called Making Conservation a California Way of Life, will require the state's urban water suppliers to reduce the amount of water they provide to customers over the next 15 years. If they don't, they could be fined as much as $10,000 a day.
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The board's goal is to make California more water-resilient and efficient, as well as avoiding the government having to introduce emergency measures during periods of drought.
It's the first time that the state's board has tried to introduce permanent water cuts, though formal adoption of the policy is now pending approval from the Office of Administrative Law (OAL). If approved, the regulation will come into effect by January 1, 2025.
Suppliers will have to calculate water budgets based on the needs of the communities they serve, considering factors such as residential indoor and outdoor water use; commercial, industrial and institutional landscapes with dedicated irrigation meters; and the maximum volume of water loss the supplier itself is allowed to lose from leakage.
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It's on water suppliers, and not on individuals, to cut water consumption. They can do so by imposing water restrictions on consumers, raising rates, or encouraging low-flow appliances.
As not all of California has the same water problems, some areas are expected to see much bigger water cuts than others.
According to the board's estimates, cuts greater than 30 percent will only affect six suppliers (two percent of all suppliers in the state affected by the regulation) by 2025 and 46 (12 percent) by 2040; this means that 118,370 people will be affected by the largest cuts by next year, and 1,733,569 in 15 years.
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The regions where water suppliers will be asked to make the biggest cuts to water delivery (greater than 30 percent) by 2040, according to the board's provisional data, are South Coast, San Joaquin Valley, and Tulare Lake.
The reductions needed to meet the objective based on 2040 standards, relative to the subset of urban uses subject to standards, will be of 92 percent for the City of Vernon; 58 percent for City of Atwater; 50 percent for Oildale Mutual Water Company; 45 percent for the West Kern Water District; and 43 percent for the City of Glendora.
Sixty-five percent of suppliers serving 29,157,064 people will see no reductions imposed by next year. By 2040, 31 percent of suppliers serving 12,459,736 residents would have avoided a reduction in water delivery entirely. Eight percent will see a reduction of less than 5 percent; 13 percent will have to cut water delivery between 5 and 10 percent; 21 percent between 10 and 20 percent; and 15 percent between 20 and 30 percent.
The Bay Area, which has historically required less water than other areas, will face a very small reduction. Salinas' California Water Service Company will have to cut supplies by only 1 percent by 2040, as reported by Desert Sun.
The regulation has proved to be somehow controversial in the Golden State, where it's been criticized as being too shy in its tackling of the problem of a drier state.
"It's unfortunate that the Board is implementing its new water conservation regulations on such a slow basis," Richard M. Frank, professor of Environmental Practice at the University of California, previously told Newsweek.
"Many of the necessary conservation measures could and should be implemented more rapidly."
Update, 7/9/24 3:15 a.m. ET: This article was updated to specify that the suppliers affected are urban water suppliers.
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Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek Reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on U.S. and European politics, global affairs ... Read more
