Sacramento, other California cities would have to conserve far less water in new rules

Sacramento and cities across California caught a break from the state’s water regulator this week after the agency faced criticism that its water conservation rules were too complicated and costly to meet.

Regulators at the State Water Resources Control Board proposed new conservation rules Tuesday that would ease water savings requirements for urban water suppliers and will ultimately lead to less long-term water savings than initially planned.

Under the new rules, the city of Sacramento would have to cut its overall water use by 9% by 2035 and 14% by 2040, far less than an initial proposal that would have required it to cut back water use by 13% by 2030 and 18% by 2035.

Statewide, experts analyzing the new rules say they will cut urban water by only 7% instead of 12% and on a much slower time frame. That will mean savings of only 180,000 acre-feet a year by 2030, instead of 750,000 acre-feet under the old rules.

“There’s real world implications to this change,” said Heather Cooley, director of research at the Pacific Institute, who noted that Gov. Gavin Newsom’s own water supply strategy called for a minimum of 500,000 acre-feet of savings by 2030. “The effect of this is it really dramatically reduces water savings and we’ll get there less quickly.”

If approved by the Water Board later this year, the proposed regulations would require about 400 urban water suppliers to shrink their water use budgets and tailor conservation goals to local needs — but not as drastically as expected.

An initial proposal that called for dramatic water savings between 2025 and 2035 ran into strong opposition last year from water agencies themselves. The Legislative Analyst’s Office also published a scathing review of the proposed rules, warning the proposal would be expensive and overly complicated to implement.

In response, Water Board staff reworked its regulatory blueprint and is now proposing less stringent water-saving standards and extending the timeline an additional five years to 2040.

“We believe that the Water Board has really taken to heart some of our recommendations and our concerns,” said Jim Peifer, executive director of the Sacramento Regional Water Authority. “We have to do our homework but these regulations are looking better.”

Peifer warned that the board’s initial rules required such drastic cuts that customers would water their lawns far less and ultimately threaten Sacramento’s prized trees. He argued the city’s lush canopy would see more damage from underwatering than trees in less arid coastal communities.

“The water agencies aren’t in complete control of customer behavior, yet they would responsible for implementing conservation regulations,” Peifer said. “It would really be hard for the customers in total to be able to maintain their landscapes in such a way that they’re still maintaining their trees.”

After a record wet year last year, rain and snow totals in California are running about average, with reservoirs mostly full and few summer water restrictions anticipated. But the state was in severe drought for nearly a decade, and state officials warn that climate change will lead to less surface water supplies on average.

The Water Board’s landmark urban water conservation rules have been in process for years. Following a severe drought, former Gov. Jerry Brown signed two laws requiring 400 California cities to produce a yearly water-use budget and eventually face fines for failing to set and meet appropriate conservation targets.

Those savings targets are based on formulas meant to shrink the amount Californians use for indoor water use such as bathing and dish washing, and outdoor water use for landscaping depending on regional climate, over time.

Under the previous rules, 168 agencies that serve 42% of California’s population would have had to cut water use 20% or more by 2035. Under the new rules, just 46 agencies, representing 10% of the population, will have to cut water use that much.

Water agencies were celebrating Tuesday at the release of the new draft rules, which they say allows them to appropriately guide their customers toward lifestyle changes required to facilitate cuts.

Chelsea Haines, regulatory relations manager for the Association of California Water Agencies, said the draft rules provide “appropriate flexibility” for urban water suppliers to build on their existing efforts to make water use more efficient.

“ACWA and its members recognize water use efficiency as an important tool to help address the impacts of climate change and look forward to continued collaboration with the state and other partners to build our resilient water future,” she said in a statement.

But the new rules came under immediate fire from environmental groups, who argue that conservation efforts even during wet years are crucial to defending California communities against impacts of climate change. Ultimately, they say less savings now will lead to shortages later.

“Water conservation and efficiency are the cheapest and fastest way to improve water reliability in the face of climate change,” said Tracy Quinn, President and CEO of Heal the Bay. “Just two years ago, California communities were on the verge of losing access to water due to severe drought. This short-sighted change to the regulation will make our water more expensive and less reliable.”

Public comment on the new urban water conservation is open now until March 27. New rules are expected to be finalized by the Water Board in July and go into effect next year.