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Foothill Residents Urged To Limit Water Use Through End Of March

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Officials on Thursday called upon foothill community residents ranging from La Crescenta to Claremont to conserve water while a major treatment plant is shut down for repairs.

The F.E. Weymouth Water Treatment Plant in La Verne, an imported drinking water source for 1.7 million people, will be taken out of service March 18-28 for inspections and upgrades, according to the Metropolitan Water District.

Pasadena's water supply is expected to be cut by 40 percent while the repairs are being done, a projection that fueled a City Council ban on outdoor watering and imposed other restrictions on water use during that period.

Diamond Bar, La Canada Flintridge, La Crescenta, San Dimas, Altadena, Rowland Heights and Walnut will also be affected.

Although some water agencies have access to groundwater and stored reservoir supplies to meet retail demands during the shutdown, others will need residents and businesses to conserve water and stretch available supplies, said Nina Jazmadarian, general manager of the Foothill Metropolitan Water District, which serves La Canada Flintridge and other cities.

"With Weymouth's supplies temporarily interrupted, some areas have agreater need for conservation measures to ensure there are adequate supplies," she said. "Most cities and water agencies in the affected areas will either seek voluntary or, in some cases, mandatory water-use reductions during the outage."

Richard Hansen, general manager of the Three Valleys MWD, added, "We all need to do our part of reduce water use while the plant is out of service."

Residents in the affected areas are urged not to water outdoors, hand-wash vehicles, fill swimming pools or spas, and hose down driveways and sidewalks.

They should also run only full loads in washing machines and dishwashers; avoid leaving tap water running when washing dishes, brushing teeth or shaving; and limit showers to five minutes.

Other water-saving tips are posted online at www.mwdh20.com and www.bewaterwise.com.

(©2010 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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