Drinking Water:

Adjust well permit requirements to avoid use of large amounts of water as part of the process – whenever possible.

New public water systems need to be done in accordance with California Water Works standards and hard rock well tests should not be shortened.

Encourage water be collected instead of running to land so it can be reused.

Clarify permitting process for rain catchment systems.

When sampling – use regularly used tap whenever possible to reduce flushing time. If resident home, ask if they want to catch in bucket or use hose to divert somewhere (detach hose after flushing and before sampling).

Flushing distribution systems – discussed during inspections and done to maintain water quality within distribution systems – we will advise systems to flush only as needed

Include drought information when mailing SWS reports

Include drought information on RTCR pending email update to all public water systems

Housing:

Prioritizing housing and water system complaints related to leaks and faulty plumbing

Food Facilities:

Promote drought prevention measures at retail food facilities.

Require that guests ask for tap water instead of being served automatically.

Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. One drop per second wastes 2,700 gallons of water per year.

Check all plumbing for leaks and have any leaks repaired by a plumber.

Choose appliances that are more water and energy efficient.

Clean vegetables in a pan filled with water rather than running water from the tap. i.e. scrub them in the pan, and then do a final rinse off, instead of scrubbing them under a flow of water.

Solid Waste:

Recommend water spray down alternatives or supplemental dust control mitigation measure such as the use of sweepers on inbound and outbound roads and for working surfaces at LEA sites.

Avoid using running water to thaw meat or other frozen foods. Defrost food overnight in the refrigerator.

Use drought-hardy ingredients- seek out ingredients that don’t require much water to grow, forgoing thirsty avocados and tomatoes.

SWITCH TO AIR HOSE TO RINSE: There are about 100,000 pre-rinse nozzles in use in California (including office buildings, hotels, schools and more), and if each of those could save at the same rate, the overall savings would be about 30 million gallons of water per year. Outreach idea: Restaurants and drought measures.

Pools:

Install a water-saving pool filter. A single back flushing with a traditional filter uses 180 to 250 gallons of water.

Cover pools and spas to reduce evaporation of water.

Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems:

Vacuum-testing to confirm to be watertightness for all new/replacement tanks prior to final inspection of OWTS vs filling the tank with 1000-3000 gallons of clean water and monitoring the level for a minimum of 24 hours.

Produce an informational handout to emphasize the impacts of leaky faucets and toilets on OWTS to benefit both the longevity of the dispersal system and improve water efficiency.