BOARD AGENDA MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT:Title
Public Hearing - Consider Adoption of an Ordinance to Enforce Valley Water's Mandatory Water Use Restrictions. *PREVIOUSLY LISTED AS ITEM 2.8.
End
RECOMMENDATION:Recommendation
A. Conduct a Public Hearing to allow members of the public to provide comments on the need to consider adoption of an Ordinance to enforce Valley Water's mandatory water use restrictions;
B. Close the Public Hearing; and
C. *Discuss, make a finding, and adopt the Ordinance, ADOPTING DROUGHT OUTDOOR WATER CONSERVATION AND ENFORCEMENT MEASURES as recommended by the Water Conservation and Demand Management Committee on May 19, 2022.
Body
SUMMARY:
On June 9, 2021, the Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water) Board declared a water shortage emergency condition pursuant to California Water Code ?350, called for mandatory countywide water use reduction of 15% compared to 2019, and urged Santa Clara County to proclaim a local emergency. The County ratified its proclamation of a drought emergency on June 22, 2021. On April 12, 2022, the Board called for no more than 2 days of irrigation in a week for lawns and ornamental landscapes and prohibited midday irrigation and runoff.
Due to the record drought, historically low imported water allocations from the State Water Project (SWP) and Central Valley Project (CVP), and little progress towards meeting the Valley Water June 2021 call for 15 percent conservation compared to 2019, additional action is needed to ensure sufficient water supply for our community. An ordinance for Board consideration will allow Valley Water to enforce water use restrictions laid out in Valley Water Resolution 22-20, amending Valley Water Resolution 21-68, to help achieve Valley Water's mandatory call for conservation.
The first three months of Calendar Year 2022 were the driest on record for Santa Clara County, and no water savings were achieved. Given the alarming increasing trend in water use in the first three mont...
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