Southern California declared a drought emergency.
Officials have declared a drought emergency in Southern California to warn millions of Californians that if conditions do not improve, water conservation measures may become mandatory.
Wednesday’s statement by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California stated that its board of Directors had made the regional drought emergency declaration one day earlier. This calls for its 26 agencies, which serve around 19 million people, to reduce their water consumption or face high fees.
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Adel Hagekhalil (general manager of MWDSC), stated in a statement that “Since the drought began, we’ve been steadily increasing [our] call for conservation.” “If we don’t have an extremely dry winter, we will need a water supply allocation that covers all of Southern California. It is possible to reduce the severity of such an allocation by ensuring that there is substantial and immediate conservation in the current and future months.
Southern California doesn’t have enough water to supply all its residents and businesses. It relies on imported water from the Colorado River or the State Water Project for almost 60% of its water.
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California officials have declared a regional drought emergency and called on water agencies to immediately reduce their use of all imported supplies.https://t.co/x6UrU3RJFl
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) December 15, 2022
Both sources of water have been affected by the prolonged droughts, which have been exacerbated due to climate change. In April, it declared its first ever water shortage emergency.
Hagekhalil warned early this month that the supply of the State Water Project, which is fed by the Sacramento River and San Joaquin Rivers, could be cut to a “trickle.” On Wednesday, the utility stated that it was planning for further reductions in supply from the Colorado River.
Hagekhalil stated that “these decreases in both our imported water resources mean everyone across Southern California has to take measures to stretch what little water we have.”
Metropolitan will make a voluntary call for conservation in the region, but if there isn’t significant precipitation, Metropolitan could implement a water supply plan for its entire service area. This would require mandatory restrictions throughout the region.
California has been fighting a drought record for many years. Governor. Gavin Newsom repeatedly announced investments and regulations to help ease the stress on supplies.
In July last year, asked residents to cut their water consumption by 15%.
Gloria Gray, board chairwoman, stated that some Southern Californians might have felt somewhat protected from the extreme conditions in recent years. “They shouldn’t anymore. All of us are affected.”