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Golden State Water Company (GSWC) filed an Advice Letter with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to activate Stage 2 in its Schedule No. 14.1 Water Shortage Contingency Plan for all of its Customer Service Areas (CSAs) that are currently not on Stage 2. *(Claremont CSA in Region 3 is already on Stage 2).
Schedule No. 14.1 provides information on mandatory restrictions, water allocations, enforcement measures and surcharges that will help to achieve reductions due to water supply shortages or to achieve identified water usage goals established by an authorized government agency or official.
On March 28, 2022, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order (EO) N‐7‐22 calling on each urban water supplier to implement actions to reduce water usage by 20‐30 percent, depending on local conditions. The EO also directs the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) to consider adopting emergency regulations to prohibit watering “non‐functional turf,” or turf that serves only ornamental purposes, in the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors during the ongoing drought emergency to conserve water supplies.
Additionally, on May 24, 2022, the State Board adopted Emergency Regulations that require urban water suppliers to implement Level 2 demand reduction actions by June 10, 2022; and that prohibit the irrigation of non‐functional turf in commercial, industrial and institutional, as well as home‐owner association sectors. The State Board defines non‐functional turf as grass that is solely ornamental and is not regularly used for recreational purposes or community events. The state‐wide emergency regulations adopted may remain in effect for up to one year, unless rescinded earlier, or extended by the State Board.
In response to the Governor’s EO and the State Board’s adopted Emergency Regulations to implement Level 2 reductions of non‐essential water use, GSWC will implement Stage 2 of its Schedule No. 14.1 Water Shortage Contingency Plan in its Arden‐Cordova, Bay Point, Clearlake, Los Osos system, Santa Maria (Sisquoc, Tanglewood, Orcutt, Lake Marie systems), Region 2 and Region 3 CSAs, requiring 20% mandatory reduction in customer usage.
All restrictions will require customers to reduce usage as compared to the amount they used in 2020.
Customers in these areas will be required to limit outdoor water use to two‐days‐per week starting on June 26, 2022, and potentially to no outdoor watering later in the year should a local water agency or local city ordinance limit all non‐essential outdoor watering.
All outdoor irrigation is limited to two (2) days per week according to the following watering schedule, and is banned between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.:
In order to achieve the water conservation goals from all customers, GSWC customers who do not meet the mandatory 20% reduction may be charged a drought surcharge of up to $2.50 per Ccf for all usage in excess of the customer’s billing allocation (compared to 2020).
To read the full notice, click here.
