City begins cracking down on water use

If it’s daylight hours, it’s time to turn off the sprinklers, according to a new citywide restriction aimed at conserving water.

Petaluma officially adopted the state’s latest mandatory emergency water regulations Monday night, after the city council unanimously approved the recommended implementation and enforcement plan. But some city council members hope to further analyze the city’s water use and adopt even more rigorous restrictions in the face of the worst drought in the state’s history.

Petaluma Public Works Director Dan St. John said residents have done a “stellar job” of voluntarily conserving water, resulting in a 15 percent reduction in water use citywide over the past six months.

St. John noted that while that number doesn’t meet the statewide goal of a 20 percent reduction, Petaluma is doing more to conserve than many other cities.

“Our citizens have done a good job,” he said.

Petalumans are expected to continue those efforts, with one new restriction in place: no irrigating landscapes with potable water between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m.

This newest restriction dovetails with several other emergency regulations approved in July by the State Water Resources Control Board, which sought to push water agencies and residents to bolster water conservation efforts or face possible fines.

St. John said most of those previous restrictions were already in place in March, when the city implemented the first stage of its Water Shortage Contingency Plan. The restrictions prohibit Californians from washing driveways and sidewalks with water; using a hose without a shut-off nozzle to wash cars; using potable water in a fountain or decorative feature, unless the water is recycled; and causing any excess runoff by over-watering outdoor landscapes,

During the meeting, St. John also outlined continued efforts to enforce the new rules. However he emphasized the importance of educating residents on ways to conserve before issuing citations. Once a violation is spotted, St. John said city staff will reach out and offer conservation tips before issuing the resident a warning. If the violation goes unresolved, a resident’s water could then be turned off, or fines ranging from $100 to $1,000 could be imposed.

Councilmember Gabe Kearney suggested that rather than having violation fines go to the city’s general fund, they could be directed to water conservation efforts.

One such conservation effort is a partnership with Daily Acts to continue educating residents about drought and water usage. A $70,000 contract with the nonprofit group was approved Monday night, and will extend through 2017 to offer workshops on everyday things the average person can do to reduce water use. St. John said the partnership is vital for the city’s public outreach and is a good value for the city.

“Daily Acts is an extension of our staff,” he said.

Even after the new regulations were adopted, some council members voiced concerns that the city needs to do even more to conserve water. Councilmember Kathy Miller suggested that the city sweep sidewalks rather than use water and steam to clean them on a regular basis. Councilmember Mike Healy echoed Miller’s concerns, saying the state’s guideline for cleaning sidewalks only when immediate health and safety needs arise was crafted with “more urban areas in mind.”

“I think it sends a bad message to the community, if we’re asking people not to do this themselves and we do it downtown in kind of an elective way,” Healy said, referring to the washing of sidewalks.

St. John said the city’s “on-call” sidewalk cleaning contract has enough flexibility to be used only when needed. Rather than the current schedule of routine cleaning, the city could instead utilize cleaning services when and where the highest needs arise, such as on weekend mornings near bars and parking areas like the Keller Street garage. He suggested that the city could cease the sidewalk cleaning service altogether during the wetter winter months.

Councilmember Teresa Barrett brought up the idea of a temporary drought-related housing moratorium. St. John said that might be premature because the city and county officials are still trying to work out the best way to conserve the region’s long-term water supply.

“It’s typically not something you would do for a short-term drought,” St. John said of a housing moratorium. “It’s something that you would do at the point where we all agree that this drought is the new norm.”

St. John said as projections of less water over the coming decades are “boiled into our region’s water supply forecast,” big picture questions of how much water can be spared by limiting development and other industries will come into play.

(Contact Allison Jarrell at allison.jarrell@argus courier.com)