City of San Diego Level 2 Drought Restrictions Will Impact Businesses and Residents

On Monday, June 1, 2009, the City of San Diego (City) will enforce a Level 2 Drought Alert, which includes mandatory water restrictions such as limits on landscape irrigation, vehicle washing, and water feature operations.  The Level 2 Drought Alert responds to cuts in water supplies available to the City.  The cuts, which were made by the City's water wholesalers, the Metropolitan Water District and the San Diego County Water Authority, will take effect on July 1, 2009.  The City is proactively taking steps to address the looming water cuts.

The following conservation practices, in addition to existing Level 1 Drought restrictions, will become mandatory on June 1st:

• Landscape irrigation is limited to no more than 3 assigned days per week from June 1 – October 31.  Apartments, condominiums and businesses can water on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and only before 10:00 a.m. or after 6:00 p.m. 
• Sprinkler irrigations systems are limited to no more than 10 minutes maximum per watering station per assigned day.    
• Vehicle washing is permitted only between 6:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. with a hand-held container or a hand-held hose with a positive shut-off nozzle for quick rinses, or at any time on the immediate premises of a commercial car wash.  Vehicle washing required for public health and safety is exempt. 
• Bird baths, koi ponds, and any ornamental water feature that uses a re-circulating pump and which does not shoot water into the air are permitted under Level 2.  Water fountains that discharge into the air a jet or stream of water are banned under Level 2, although they may be operated for maintenance purposes.  Any water feature that does not re-circulate water is banned. 
• Use of recycled or non-potable water is required for construction purposes when available, and construction operations will not use water obtained by a fire hydrant meter for uses other than normal construction activity. 

Failure to comply with the above mandatory restrictions may result in penalties from the City, up to and including civil or criminal prosecution by the City Attorney and/or a shut off of water service.  The City will allow customers to request a hardship variance from the Level 2 restrictions.  A full list of the City's mandatory restrictions can be found here.

Other local water suppliers, including the Carlsbad Municipal Water District, the Vallecitos Water District and the Rainbow Municipal Water District, have adopted similar water restrictions.  The most stringent example of conservation can be found within the boundaries of the Rainbow Municipal Water District, which will not provide any new potable water service or any new temporary or permanent meters, and will not issue any "will serve" letters, with limited exceptions. 

How We Can Help:
For more information on the above measures, to get help complying with the restrictions or to seek assistance with a hardship variance, please feel free to contact us.