Mayor Sanders of San Diego Wants Council to Approve Mandatory Water Rationing by June 1, 2009 (KPBS)

May.04, 2009 in Drought, Public Works, Water Conservation

(May 4, 2009, KPBS)

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders wants the city council to approve his call for mandatory water restrictions. KPBS reporter Alison St John has more.

Sanders says voluntary water conservation has saved about 5%, but he says that isn’t enough to meet the water restrictions coming this summer.

He wants to impose Level 2 mandatory water conservation. That means people can only water their gardens three times a week, and sprinklers must be programmed for 10 minutes a day only.

Those living in homes with odd numbered addresses would only be allowed to turn on the sprinklers on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Those with even numbered addresses would be required to water their gardens on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday only.

“Today, we’re poised at the beginning of a new era in San Diego’s water history,” Sanders says.”With council support, we’re going to make the changes we need to preserve and protect the water supplies that are critical to our economy and our overall quality of life.”

The city has hired 7 code enforcement officers to patrol neighborhoods, and people who ignore warnings could be fined between $100 and $1000.

However the city will focus initially on public education to raise awareness of the new rules. which could go into effect June 1^st.

(Original Article Here)