As drought worsens, IRWD finds new ways to save water.

On Monday, July 13, the Irvine Ranch Water District Board of Directors declared a Level Two Water Shortage. The declaration  reaffirms the steps that IRWD customers need to take to help the District meet the Governor’s mandate to reduce drinking water use by 25 percent statewide. This is the first time in the history of IRWD that a Level Two Water Shortage will be declared.

“This declaration is a direct response to the severity of the drought in our state,” said IRWD Board President, Steve LaMar. “We are doing everything we can to reduce our dependency on drinking water supplies and are asking customers to help in this effort. In addition, we are asking customers to cut their outdoor water use in half and embrace ‘Brown is the New Green.’”

IRWD has been tasked by the state to reduce drinking water use throughout the service area by 16 percent, which equates to the need to save approximately 2.6 billion gallons of water, or almost 3,950 Olympic-sized swimming pools. This challenge can be met if all customers do their part to save water.

To assist in these efforts, IRWD has reduced the outdoor water allocation, which is now based on drought-tolerant landscaping rather than warm season turf. IRWD hopes these changes will persuade customers to let their lawns go brown and switch to water-efficient landscaping by taking advantage of the Turf Removal Rebate, which offers $2 per square feet of grass removed, up to 3,000 square feet.

IRWD customers can take these steps to help reduce the use of drinking water and keep their bill low:

• cut outside watering in half
• let your water-thirsty lawn go brown
• get ready to install drought tolerant landscaping in the Fall
• and fix water leaks which are often a hidden cause of water waste.

To get customers used to the idea of letting their lawns go brown, ads promoting “Brown is the New Green: Cut Outdoor Water Use in Half” are now featured on buses, shopping centers, and in movie theaters across the IRWD service area. A letter and “Drought Survival Guide” were mailed out to residents in early June. Workshops on how to use the right plants, the right schedule, and the right equipment for a water-efficient landscape are held on an on-going basis (check irwd.com/events for dates) and a Drought Survival Expo will be held September 12 at IRWD, featuring workshops and landscape demonstrations.

 Level One Water Shortage Measures Already in Effect:

• Prevention of irrigation run-off and water waste;
• Leak prevention;
• Ban on washing down hard or paved surfaces, except when necessary to alleviate safety or sanitary hazards;
• Ban on the use of non-recirculating decorative fountains or water features;
• Ban on single-pass cooling; and
• Ban on the use of a hose for vehicle washing unless the hose has a positive, automatic shut-off device.

Level Two Water Shortage Measures Included in the new Stage Two Declaration:

• Customers shall reduce potable landscape watering by up to 50 percent;
• Swimming pools shall be filled to a lower level to minimize water loss due to splashing.
• Discretionary maintenance requiring refilling of swimming pools shall be prohibited. Filling newly constructed pools and refilling pools for required, non-discretionary maintenance are not subject to the ban;
• Commercial conveyor and in-bay car wash systems must reuse water if equipped to do so;
• Recycled water shall be required for construction activities, including earthwork, dust control and clean-up. The District may, at its discretion, waive this requirement if it can be demonstrated to the District’s satisfaction that compliance with the requirement imposes undue hardship;
• The use of recycled water is required for street sweeping activities. The District may, at its discretion, waive this requirement if it can be demonstrated to the District’s satisfaction that compliance with the requirement imposes undue hardship;
• Common interest associations shall not fine or assess owners of separate interests for reducing or eliminating the watering of vegetation or lawns, unless the association uses only recycled water for irrigation of the association’s common areas and recycled water is also available at the irrigated area of the separate interest.
• The District, by separate action, shall implement demand management measures through adjustments in the allocation-based pricing structure (On June 22, 2015, the Board adopted No. 2015-17 implementing such adjustments).

For the latest information on the drought and how it impacts IRWD customers, visit irwd.com/drought.

Beginning in July, your bills will be calculated using the updated IRWD Budget Based rate structure.

IRWD must meet a 16 percent reduction in potable water use by February 2016. In order to implement this mandate, all IRWD customers will be required to limit their outdoor water use.

Because of the Governor Jerry Brown’s mandate, IRWD will be reducing your outdoor water budgets. The outdoor water budgets will no longer be based on warm season turf.

Effective July 1, 2015, your outdoor water budget will be based on drought tolerant landscaping with drip or a similar high efficiency system. It will no longer be based on turf. This means that customers who have lawns must take steps to reduce outdoor water use or you will go over your monthly water budget and receive a higher bill.

How Your Water Bill is Calculated

IRWD uses a budget based rate structure that is based on the cost of service and has two basic components that make up your water bill: Cost of Water+ Service Charge.

The amount of water used inside and outside your home is calculated using cost of local and imported water.

The service charge is based on daily operation, maintenance and infrastructure costs.

Understanding Your budget

Every residence is given a water budget—think of it as a water budget—based on the number of people in the home and landscape area. A single family home bases the budget on 1,300 sq. ft. of landscape area and four residents. An attached home or condo bases the budget on 435 sq. ft. of landscape area and three residents. Apartment budgets are based on no landscape area and two people.

Your Monthly Indoor & Outdoor Water budgets

Your indoor budget plus your outdoor budget equals the total amount of water your residence is allowed to use monthly.

Indoor budget: No Changes for FY 2015/16. Your indoor water budget will continue to be based on the default number of residents in a home and the type of home. The indoor budget is currently 50 gallons per person per day.

Outdoor budget: Changes from turf to water-efficient landscaping. The new outdoor water budget will provide enough water for water-efficient landscaping rather than grass. Other factors also increase or decrease your monthly outdoor water budget, such as the weather. If you have a lawn, you will likely go over your budget and receive a higher water bill.

Variances from Standard Water budget

Need more water? IRWD offers increases to customers’ water budgets for the following reasons:

• More people living in the home
• Medical needs
• Additional landscaped area
• Livestock
• Other special circumstances

To apply for a variance, visit irwd.com and click on “Request a Variance” on the left-hand side.

Why Are My Rates Going Up?

In addition to the state mandate for water reduction, the main reasons for the rate changes are due to uncontrollable cost increases from:

• Significantly higher operating costs (28 percent increase)
• Higher electricity costs (5 percent increase)
• Higher costs for imported water (2 percent increase)
• Increased charges for pumping local groundwater* (10 percent increase)

*Note: Does not apply to Los Alisos rate area.

The lobby of the Irvine Ranch Water District has been transformed into an art gallery featuring the winning Water Awareness posters of students from all over Southern California. The display is the 2015 Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s Student Art Exhibit, which includes the winning art work of Ashley Lee, a Hicks Canyon Elementary School second grader.

Ashley’s art work and the other 35 winning posters will be displayed in the IRWD lobby and available for public viewing through July 1 during regular business hours: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The students, their parents and teachers were invited to a ceremony at Metropolitan’s Los Angeles office in December. The winning art work was framed and on display in the building’s rotunda. Winning posters were published in the 2015 Water is Life calendar.

The traveling art show began in January and is making its way around various water agencies all over Southern California. The show will conclude the end of July and the framed art work returned to the participating agencies. Ashley will be honored at a future IRWD board meeting and be presented with her winning art work.

More information about IRWD education programs is available on our website.

There are many ways to take advantage of free Irvine Ranch Water District resources for saving water at your home or business – rebates, RightScape garden resources, watering schedules, workshops and home water check-ups.

1. Rebates – Using water-efficient devices can help lower water use. Several rebates are offered to help you save water and money. Receive $250 for high-efficiency clothes washers; $150 for high-efficiency toilets; $380 for weather-based irrigation controllers; $4 for each rotating sprinkler nozzle; turf removal, $2 per square-foot; $75 for rain barrels, and up to $380 for a soil moisture sensor. Visit www.irwd.com/save-water-money/rebates for information.
2. RightScape Garden Resources – This is a one-stop shop for garden tours, garden galleries and a searchable plant database. Seach for water-efficient plants by sun or shade, color, height and more. Check out RightScapeResources.com.
3. Keep your plants healthy and hydrated with the least amount of water by using our free watering schedule to program your sprinkler timer. The current watering schedule is available at irwd.com/RightScape.
4. IRWD offers free workshops throughout the year to help customers learn about water-efficient gardening. Visit irwd.com/events to check our current schedule and to sign up for an upcoming workshop.
5. Are you water bills unusually high despite your ongoing efforts to save water? You could have a water leak or are inadvertently using too much water in other areas. IRWD offers an array of resources such as online videos that instruct customers on how to check for different kinds of leaks and a step-by-step tutorial on how to do your own home water use check-up. Visit irwd.com/checkup for more information and resources.