Folsom considers water saving measures

By Steffi Broski
CNS Staff Writer

Folsom City Council member Andy Morin is glad to see rain clouds in the sky and welcomes every drizzle that touches the ground. But it won’t be enough to fill up Folsom Lake.

“Usually, the lake has about 1 million acre feet of water, (and) at this time of the year, around 500,000. We are looking at 250,000 acre feet right now, which is only half of normal and a quarter of full,” said Morin, who is a River Forecast Center senior hydrologist.

One acre foot is the equivalent of 325,851 gallons; it would take more than 82 billion gallons of water to fill the lake half full again.

The city council discussed an ordinance Tuesday that would define five stages of water conservation and penalties for water waste. The council will vote on the ordinance Feb. 24, and if approved, it would be effective 30 days later.

For several months, the city has been trying to conserve water by installing meters and limiting irrigation.

In July, when the Bureau of Reclamation announced that it would deliver 25 percent less water to municipal suppliers, such as the city of Folsom, the city implemented a plan to reduce water use by 20 percent and declared a stage 2 “water alert.”

Morin said by the end of the summer, that goal was met largely by reducing irrigation to three days per week. The new ordinance clarifies five stages of water conservation from a stage 1 “basic” stage to a stage 5 “water emergency.” Each stage will reduce water consumption by increasingly cutting back on irrigation, ponds, fountains, car washing, pool refills and installation of new lawns and landscaping.

During stage 2 residents with even street number addresses water on Wednesday, Friday and Sundays, while residents with odd number addresses water on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays.

One of the goals of the new measure is to define penalties for violating the city’s water use policy and enhance the city’s ability to enforce water conservation.

“We handle enforcement with a lot of discretion,” Morin said. “This is not targeted toward first time offenders, but we made sure the ordinance has enough teeth in it so we can come down on users that continue to waste water after several notices.”

After the first violation residents receive a personal or written notification of violation; the second will result in a written notification. A third violation could result in discontinued water service, a fine up to $100, mandatory installation of a meter, and other penalties as determined by the utilities director.

“We are basically trying to get people’s attention. This is for the guy that says: ‘I don’t care how much it costs, I just want my lawn green,’” said Walter Sadler, assistant director of the Folsom Utilities Department.

With the low water levels in the Folsom Reservoir, the city later this month is expected to issue a stage 3 “water warning,” Morin said. This would mean additional water use restrictions for parks and landscaping.

In June, Gov. Schwarzenegger declared a drought in California. The entire state is facing this crisis, but Folsom faces unique challenges, city officials said. The city has no ground water resources; Folsom Lake, the city’s water supplier, has extremely low water levels due to the lack of snow and rain.

According to the Department of Water Resources, this year’s rainfall has been below average, and statewide reservoir levels are only 68 percent of average for this time of the year. In 2008, they were at 80 percent of average. Morin said the city won’t know the extent of the drought until May.

In an effort to control water waste, meters are being installed in all residential homes. By state law, the city must install water meters by 2013. City Manager Kerry Miller said the meters will make customers more conscious of their water use. It is anticipated that by the end of summer, all Folsom residential homes will be metered, city officials said.

“We do live in a desert,” Sadler said. “And the situation is bad enough now to have everyone concerned.”