Conforming to a state mandate to reduce water usage by 25 percent, the Sonoma City Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to ban landscape irrigation three days a week. Beginning June 1, drip and sprinkler systems can not be used on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays, nor can irrigation take place during the day on any other day, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Watering by hand, including using a hose with a shut-off nozzle, is exempt.
“This has not gone away, and this is not going away,” Public Works Director Melinka Bates said of the statewide water shortage. “We are going to have to live with it.”
Under the “Stage 2” mandate, target water usage is 140 gallons per person, per day. The current figure is about 180.
The resolution did not specify other cuts, as “irrigation is the biggest culprit,” according to Bates. Though the exact fine or penalty has not been stipulated, people watering on the wrong day will be cited. A dedicated phone line will be set up for reports (anonymous, if necessary) of over-watering.
“I’m not comfortable with the ‘water police’ idea,” said council member Joanne Sanders, who suggested monitoring water bills to flag those using too much. Council member Steve Barbose spoke in favor of adding a penalty surcharge. “We’ve got to take action against over-users,” he said. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t cost much to be wasteful.”
The initial focus will be on communication and “active outreach.” Bates told the council, “The high-users have already been contacted.”
Tips on saving water and information about free and low-cost programs – a free sensor to turn off an irrigation system when it rains, for example — will be distributed under the new measure.
Longer term, Barbose said it may be time to revisit a building moratorium. “It would be hard to vote this in and at the same time approve more new hook-ups.”
