LeakBird

(April 19, 2009, Kelly Zito, The San Francisco Chronicle)
“We’re out there telling people to use less water, and yet a lot of the revenue we have is based on what people use,” said Gary Breaux, finance director for the East Bay Municipal Utility District, which serves 1.3 million people in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. [...]

(April 3, 2009, Kelly Zito, The San Francisco Chronicle)

Get ready for singed lawns, dusty cars and pricier produce.
California water officials reported Thursday that the end-of-winter snowpack remained at low levels for the third year in a row, and water agencies in the Bay Area and around the state are asking residents to conserve at levels [...]

(March 21, 2009, Kelly Zito, The San Francisco Chronicle)
Earthquakes and severe storms could destroy hundreds of miles of mostly earthen levees in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in coming decades, according to a state report that provides the most detail yet on the vulnerabilities of the hub of California’s water system.
Among the findings in the [...]

(Feb. 28, 2009, Kelly Zito, The San Francisco Chronicle)
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought emergency Friday, urging cities to cut their use of water 20 percent and paving the way for projects such as desalination plants and water recycling projects to bypass standard environmental reviews.
Despite heavy rainstorms this month, state officials say California’s water [...]

(Feb. 27, 2009, Kelly Zito, The San Francisco Chronicle)
The company has a gallery in New York’s tony SoHo district; one of it’s recent releases is named “Gwyneth”; it has near-cult status among the eco-affluent (and Google).
We’re talking about a toilet here.
Specifically, the Toto toilet – a water-efficient commode made by Japanese company founded in 1917.
The [...]

(Feb. 15, 2009, Kelly Zito, The San Francisco Chronicle)

Is it time to stick a straw into the Pacific Ocean?
About 20 water agencies up and down the California coast seem to think so.
From Marin County to San Diego, small and large projects that turn seawater into tap water are gaining favor, propelled by events unprecedented in [...]

(Feb. 4, 2009, Kelly Zito, San Francisco Chronicle)
With California in a critical drought, every shower, load of laundry and glass of tap water counts. But only in Bolinas could those things cost you your water connection.
The oceanside enclave in Marin County has enacted some of the state’s toughest water restrictions. Each customer – with the [...]

(Jan. 23, 2009, Kelly Zito, San Francisco Chronicle)
Flowers and kitchen gardens might look extra perky after this week’s rains, but January’s long dry stretch means Bay Area residents should prepare for baked lawns and stop-and-start showers this summer, water officials said Thursday.
The rainfall expected in the region through Monday will be too little, too late [...]