Water Wasters Beware, Warns EBMUD
Running your water all day could end up costing you hundreds of dollars on your water bill or even force the installation of a water meter at your home, following a vote by the EBMUD Board of Directors earlier this month.
And while water officials are not going to send officers to your home any time soon, they are asking the public to continue to take seriously the mandatory 10 percent water use reduction issued back in April.
“We’re not water cops, but we are asking customers to be responsible and to conserve and protect water supplies.”
“We’re not water cops, but we are asking customers to be responsible and to conserve and protect water supplies,” said East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) spokesperson Nelsy Rodriguez.
All of California is under extreme drought conditions—the second time in 10 years—and all 58 counties in the state are under a drought emergency proclamation. To date, EBMUD reservoir levels are less than 71 percent capacity, prompting the district to impose mandatory water reductions.
Customers are already expecting an 8% drought surcharge on bills starting July 1, following a board vote in May. But at its June 14 meeting, EBMUD’s board elevated its Excessive Water Use Penalty Ordinance to deter customers from wasting water. The ordinance sets penalties for single-family residential customers whose water use exceeds a specified threshold. Currently, that threshold is 132 units per two-month billing period, or roughly 1,646 gallons per day.
The first time a customer exceeds the threshold during a drought, they will receive a warning and would not be in violation of the Ordinance until they have a second exceedance, Rodriguez explained. The warning provides customers the opportunity to make leak repairs, reduce irrigation, change water use behaviors, or take other actions to reduce household water use.
Customers who violate the ordinance will be subject to a penalty of $2 per unit if the water used is above the threshold. For perspective, a household that used double that amount—or 3,292 gallons per day—could rack up $264 in penalties. In addition, EBMUD is legally required to respond to California Public Records Act requests with the name, water usage data, and home address of any customers who violate the ordinance. Repeatedly water wasting violators could even see EBMUD install a metering device that restricts water flows.
One way of monitoring your water use is to look at your water bill. The service charges are broken down by usage and the bill also lets you know when your billing cycle starts and a comparison against last year’s water usage.
For immediate controlled monitoring of your water usage, Rodriguez suggests customers follow the ongoing drought restrictions guidelines.
“You should limit outdoor watering to three times per week, between the hours of 9 pm to 6 am,” she said. “We ask that you not use water to wash your sidewalks and driveways. They’re not going to grow. You can also use a hose with a shut-off nozzle so that the water doesn’t run down the street and out to the storm drains.”