Image by Jack Sellaire from Pixabay
April 24, 2022 - SACRAMENTO – As California faces the driest stretch the West Coast has seen in 1,200 years, the Senate took action last Thursday and approved historic water conservation standards, moving the state closer to achieving water efficiency as a way of life.
SB 1157, authored by Senate Majority Leader Emeritus Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), aligns California’s indoor water use standards with recommendations from the State Department of Water Resources (DWR) and State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) based on years of data they collected.
“This kind of water policy is what we like to call raging commonsense. As we stare down potentially endless, worsening cycles of drought in California, our water policy must match and support efforts to conserve,” Senator Hertzberg said. “If we don’t update standards and change what conservation and efficiency means, we will be in big trouble because climate change has thrown out all the rules. We must go on offense to keep faucets flowing for all Californians.”
In 2018, the Legislature approved SB 606 (Hertzberg) and AB 1668 (Friedman), which established a foundation for long-term water efficiency improvements to enhance the state’s resiliency to drought. State agencies determined Californians’ water use was already in line with the existing goal set for 2030 and recommended they be updated as water efficiency improves. The current median water use is 48 gallons per capita daily – this bill updates the standard to 47 gallons starting in 2025 and 42 gallons in 2030.
Californians have become more efficient with their water usage over time, and the changing climate and dwindling water supply requires the state continue making strides in water conservation and efficiency – not only to respond to the current “megadrought,” but to better prepare for the next one.
“Water efficiency is a fast and inexpensive way to stretch limited water supplies, especially during the extreme drought conditions Californians are living through now,” said Victoria Rome, NRDC’s (Natural Resources Defense Council) Director of California Government Affairs. “SB 1157 establishes a roadmap for indoor water use standards over the next decade to truly make conservation a California way of life.”
"Ensuring water systems plan and design their rates to encourage conservation is a step in the right direction towards achieving the Human Right to Water in California," said Kyle Jones, Policy & Legal Director with Community Water Center. "As climate change continues to limit what little water we have, indoor water efficiency is fundamental to all communities having access to affordable and accessible water moving forward."
Source: Senator Bob Hertzberg
