Californians return to their water saving ways in March as drought continues

Normally a tough month for water savings, Califoians saved 35 billion gallons of water in March as compared to the same month in 2013 for a 24.3 percent water saving, state water officials reported.

Cooler temperatures and March rains contributed to the water savings but the numbers were impressive, said Felicia Marcus, chair of the State Water Resources Control Board.

“That is pretty remarkable after the rains. This says something about people knowing to tu off their sprinklers. It is the most welcome news we’ve had in a long time,” Marcus said Tuesday during a board meeting in Sacramento.

The March water savings is a big tuaround from the previous month.

Southe Califoia as a region conserved 6.9 percent in February, the lowest of any region in the state. Water officials said saving water in winter is tough because water use is already low. Califoians saved 13.6 billion gallons of water in February, which is almost 4.7 times the amount of water saved in February 2015 (2.9 billion gallons).

On April 20, the board met with hundreds of cities, water utilities and private water companies in an effort to reduce targets and adjust a new conservation plan that runs through October. The board will consider reducing targets due to water availability and hydrology as part of an adjusted water conservation plan later this month.

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