Photo: FREDERIC J. BROWN / AFP / Getty Images
Outdoor watering will be restricted to 2 days a week, down from the current 3-day limit, announced Tuesday the mayor of the city of Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti, in the midst of a severe drought facing southern California.
During a press conference, held at an Eagle Rock residence, Garcetti said that the new restrictions will take effect on 1 June, the same day that California residents will have changes in water use.
The mayor expressed that the 2-day limit in Los Angeles was more lenient than the one established by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), which has directed many of its agencies to restrict outdoor watering to once a week.
“The Angelenos have done something else. In the city of Los Angeles we have done more, so we don’t have to see the risk of plants dying or going to one day a week because of all the things that we are collectively doing,” Garcetti said.
Sprinkler irrigation will be allowed on Mondays and Fridays in the odd addresses of the metropolis, while in the even addresses it will be allowed on Thursdays and Sundays, according to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP).
Outdoor watering will not be allowed between 9:00: 00 am and 4: 00 pm, regardless of the day allowed.
Sprinkler irrigation will remain restricted to 8 minutes per station, while sprinklers using water conserving nozzles are limited to 54 min utos.
The LADWP strongly recommends the use of pool covers for the purpose to reduce evaporation, in addition to cleaning vehicles in car wash facilities.
For the first time in its history, MWD is requiring restrictions to be placed in portions of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.
Garcetti mentioned that the most lenient restriction in the city is thanks to the effort to conserve the liquid that Angelenos have already shown.
Before Tuesday’s announcement, officials had said that two options were being considered for Los Angeles: the first, that agencies would impose water quantity limitations on residents, and a second in which the LADWP would require customers to limit outdoor water use to one day a week.
From January to March of this year, California recorded the driest months for more than 100 years. The 58 counties of the state remain under a drought emergency.
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