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 "Roll out the Rain Barrel" art contest
Call for Entries
The District is seeking entries for its popular Roll Out the Rain Barrel Art Contest. The contest is open to 1st through 12th graders attending school in the District’s service area, as well as Laguna College of Art and Design students, and District customers.
The contest promotes the use of rain barrels, which collect and store rain water from roofs that would otherwise be lost to runoff and diverted to storm drains, streams, and the ocean. Rain barrels sit under gutter down spouts and collect water that can be used to water plants in the landscape.
Contest participants are asked to create an original design on the back of the official entry form, which can be picked up at the District’s headquarters office located at 306 Third Street or by clicking on the "Roll out the Rain Barrel" graphic on the right. Completed drawings must be submitted to the District by Friday, March 16, by 5 p.m.
The most creative entries will have the opportunity to recreate their artwork on an actual working rain barrel, provided by the District, and receive a $100 gift card. Winning rain barrels will be on display at selected locations in downtown Laguna Beach during the month of May, designated as Water Awareness Month in California.
For additional information on the Rain Barrel art contest, contact Michelle Madriz, the District’s water use efficiency specialist, at 464-3107. |
District adopts budget-based rate structure
Beginning January 1, 2011, the District is implementing a Tiered Rate Structure based on property specific Water Budgets. Tiered rates provide customers with an economic incentive to use water efficiently and pass on the higher costs associated with conservation programs and development of supplemental water sources to those who use water inefficiently.
Water budgets promote efficient water use by providing enough water for typical, yet efficient, water use indoors and outdoors without penalty. Budgets are property specific and take into account different water use factors depending on whether you have a single-family, multi-family, commercial/industrial/institutional, mixed use, or irrigation-only water account. Since approximately 60 percent of a typical customer’s water use is for irrigation, the water budget focuses on weather and irrigation data, allowing more water in the summer months.
Water budgets allow you to decide how to use your budgeted water. If you want to use more water for a flower garden, you might consider areas of your yard where you can cut back or you could make sure to have water-efficient appliances and implement water-saving practices for your family. Water budgets are about choice. As long as you’re not over watering or wasting water in other ways, you should have plenty of water for your indoor needs and to maintain a healthy landscape.
District's Water Use Efficiency Ordinance
The District’s Board of Directors approved Ordinance 100 establishing a Water Use Efficiency and Water Supply Shortage Program at their June 16, 2009 Board Meeting.
The purpose of this ordinance is to provide for increasingly serious stages of water shortages and to define voluntary and mandatory water conservation measures to be implemented during these stages.
The key elements of the District’s Ordinance include:
1. Permanent Mandatory Restrictions that are in effect at all times and if not adhered to represent waste and unreasonable use of water. These measures are designed to optimize water-use efficiency even when there is no water supply shortage. All District customers would be required to adhere to these restrictions throughout the year.
2. Staged Responses to water supply shortages. The ordinance details four levels of District response to escalating water shortages. Depending upon the degree of water supply shortage, the District could enact any of the four levels listed below. This would trigger additional water use efficiency measures for District customers, over and above the permanent measures.
- Water Watch voluntary measures enacted in times of shortage to achieve a 5 – 15 percent reduction in water use.
- Level 1 Water Alert mandatory restrictions enacted in times of shortage to achieve a 15 – 30 percent reduction in water use.
- Level 2 Water Warning mandatory restrictions enacted in times of shortage to achieve a 30 – 50 percent reduction in water use.
- Level 3 Water Emergency mandatory restrictions enacted in times of shortage to achieve over 50 percent reduction in water use.
3. Enforcement and Penalties will be put in place for failure to comply with any provisions of the Ordinance. First offenses will bring warnings. Subsequent offenses will draw fines increasing up to $500. Noncompliance could be prosecuted as a misdemeanor.
This ordinance applies to all District customers. A full copy of the Water Use Efficiency Ordinance can be viewed here:
WUE Ordinance
District Dives into Desalination
The District is taking a historic step towards its water future and studying the feasibility of a regional ocean desalination plant in Dana Point, CA. The District has been 100 percent reliant on imported water from the Colorado River and Northern California since 1948. Both sources have been severely impacted by record dry conditions and court ordered reductions.
Four other agencies, which include: South Coast Water District, Moulton Niguel Water District, City of San Juan Capistrano, and City of San Clemente Utilities Division have also pledged funds to study the regional plant. The desalination project took roots in 2006 when the Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC) oversaw a test-drilling project at Doheny State Beach. The project showed favorable enough results to pursue an 18-month pilot plant to further test the feasibility of a larger project.
Construction of the pilot plant is contingent on the number of south county agencies willing to participate. The more participants, the less money each agency would have to contribute. The cost would also be offset by a state grant secured by MWDOC and the possibility of additional state and federal funding.
“The District’s Board and Commission have long considered desalination a viable water supply option for Laguna Beach.” says Renae Hinchey, LBCWD general manager. However, the cost of pursuing the option on our own has been prohibitive. A regional plant, where costs are shared, benefits not only Laguna Beach ratepayers, but also all of South County. The time is now. Laguna Beach and South County cannot continue to rely on the dependability of imported water supplies.”
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