LA City Council Approves New Phase In Water Conservation Efforts
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — The Los Angeles City Council Wednesday approved a new phase in the city's effort to conserve water.
The proposal included adding a new stage that would limit residents to watering outdoors to two days per week if the city has to step into it's Emergency Drought Response.
The city currently has in place Phase 2, which limits outdoor watering to three days per week. With the approval, the next stage would be reducing that to two days before Phase 4, which would restrict watering to one day a week.
"We have to make sure we have all the tools available if and when we have to move to a Phase 3," Councilmember Felipe Fuentes said.
The city is currently using about 40 percent of its drinking water to keep lawns and landscapes green.
"We have this horrible drought and everybody's got these green lawns and lush landscapes — it's ridiculous," Mount Washington resident Denise Robison said.
If the drought continues to worsen, phase three could be implemented in the fall. The City Council also approved recommending using pool covers and only washing vehicles at car washes.
"We're hoping and praying for an El Nino, and we'll know this fall if we have to get more severe with water restrictions," Fuentes said.
Those wishing to report water waste can:
- Call 1-800-DIAL-DWP hotline, which was set up with an expedited phone tree for water waste reporting
- Email LADWP's dedicated reporting email address: waterwaste@LADWP.com
- Partnering with the city's phone app and website: MyLA311
