Laguna Beach County Water District ends drought restrictions

Citing improved water conditions throughout the region and state, the Laguna Beach County Water District(LBCWD) is ending several drought-related restrictions, including limits on outside watering.

At its meeting on Thursday, the district’s board voted to end water restrictions approved last June, which included a 10 percent reduction in water use by all customers and limits on outdoor water use. The decision comes on the heels of a historically wet winter and Governor Gavin Newsom’s March 24 decision to end many of the state’s two-year-old emergency drought rules.

“What a difference a few months make,” stated Christopher Regan, assistant general manager, Laguna Beach County Water District. “Recent storms have made 2023 one of the wettest years on record, with snowpack reaching historic levels. Because of conservation and improved water supplies, we’re heading into the summer months with one of the worst droughts in California’s history behind us.”

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Courtesy of LBCWD

Nereida Morales, LBCWD customer service rep/tech, assists customers in their efforts to use water efficiently

Not all the district’s restrictions have ended, however. Customers must still follow the district’s always-in-effect permanent water use efficiency measures, regardless of whether there is a water supply shortage. District customers are still required to avoid excessive runoff while watering their yards, are prohibited from watering during and within 48 hours of measurable rainfall, from hosing down driveways, patios and sidewalks unless necessary for health and safety reasons and from using a hose to wash vehicles unless it’s fitted with a nozzle that can be shut off.

The district’s rule against watering between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. is still in effect, as well.

With California’s semi-arid climate, dry conditions are not unusual and drought is always on the horizon. The district continues to offer resources and rebates to encourage water-use efficiency, which can be found at its website, www.lbcwd.org. Customers are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the district’s Smart Meter dashboard, which provides them access to their detailed water usage information in near real-time and enables them to set up leak alerts; view graphs of their daily, monthly and average water usage to identify usage trends or high usage events, and set daily, multi-day and vacation alerts to monitor consumption and alert them of abnormal usage.