ckly STAFF REPORT Meeting Date: February 06, 2018 To:

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1 ckly STAFF REPORT Meeting Date: February 06, 2018 To: Honorable Mayor & City Council From: Debby Figoni, Water Conservation Administrator Subject: Water Conservation Update Attachments: 1. Comment Letter to State Water Resources Control Board INTRODUCTION On April 7, 2017, after generous rains and ample snowpack from the rain year, Governor Brown announced the end of the drought state of emergency and the release of Executive Order CEO) B In a related action, state agencies, including Department of Water Resources (DWR), released a plan to continue Making Water Conservation a California Way of Life. This plan essentially prohibits wasteful water use such as hosing off sidewalks, washing automobiles without a shut off nozzle, using non-recirculating water fountains, watering lawns in a manner that causes runoff and irrigating ornamental turn on public street medians. All of these items are presently enforced in Beverly Hills. A year ago, 64% of California was in some form of drought phase. As of October 1, 2017, (the beginning of the current water year) only 22% of California was in drought. As of January 1, 2018, 44% of the State was back in some form of drought condition; unfortunately, rain fall and snowpack are below average for this time of year. The City s water customers have done an excellent job using water efficiently over the past few years with a 21.5% reduction in 2016 and an 18.4% reduction in 2017 (note: water usage is compared to 2013 usage). Percentage reductions have been declining the last few months, not just in Beverly Hills but around the State, with some water agencies using more water in 2017 than they did in DISCUSSION State and City Water Conservation Regulations Update On November 1, 2017, the State Water Resources Control Board (Board) requested comments on proposed regulations to prohibit certain wasteful water use practices in response to Governor Brown s Executive Orders. In December, staff submitted comments to the Board explaining that the City of Beverly Hills, as a water supplier, Page 1 of 3 1/31/2018

2 Meeting Date: February 06, 2018 supports water conservation efforts and supports our customers in meeting or exceeding State standards, but finds the Board s proposed actions unclear and in need of more details and direction (a copy of this letter is included as Attachment #1 to this report). After taking all comments, objections and recommendations into consideration, it is anticipated that the Board will release new regulations in the next few months. The current water year s precipitation and snowpack will also be considered as part of the Board s regulations. Once the State adopts these new regulations, staff will finalize proposed modifications to the City s Water Conservation Ordinance (Title 9, Chapter 4) and work with the Public Works Commission to develop a recommendation for City Council s consideration; this is anticipated for spring of Public Education & Outreach Programs In 2017, staff reached out to over 1,350 customers concerning water leaks, excessive irrigation and/or other water conservation needs. To spread the water conservation message, several ads were placed in local papers, social media posts were provided on a regular basis and water conservation flyers were disseminated at a variety of City facilities. The most widely promoted flyer covets the City s free Water Tracker program. The Water Tracker flyer, along with the other educational flyers (Caring for Your Lawn, How to Read Your Water Meter and Tree Watering Tips) are now available in both English and Spanish. Also in 2017, staff provided a water conservation update to every City Commission, met with each school PTA, performed 156 site water audits and disseminated information about the City s Stage C conservation mandates throughout the community. Stage C requests a 20% water reduction Citywide and two days per week outdoor watering; during this time of year it allows for two days per week watering. iç I I North of Santa Monica October - May Monday& Friday June September Monday, Wednesday & Friday South of Tuesday, Thursday& Tuesday& Saturday Santa Monica Saturday. On a national level, the City has applied to be an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) WaterSense Partner in an effort to support and promote water efficient devices. EPA s WaterSense is more than just a product label; it is a symbol that represents the importance of water efficiency in the United States and is effective through the partnerships created by the EPA, product manufacturers and other cities. Partnering with WaterSense is free. As a WaterSense partner, participating cities can take Page 2 of 3 1/31/2018

3 Meeting Date: February 06, 2018 advantage of consistent national messaging to educate consumers on the importance of saving water for future generations, support campaigns such as Fix-a-Leak Week, participate in a national network of peers to share success stories, attend partner-only webinars and receive regular program news and updates. Additionally, staff is working on the City s application to join the Wyland National Mayor s Challenge for Water Conservation. In 2017, residents from more than 4,800 cities across the United States took part in Wyland s Challenge by pledging to save over 2.2 billion gallons of water over the coming year. The annual month-long campaign in April to promote drought resiliency and water quality ended with mayors from 38 states vying to see which city could be the nation s most water wise. The challenge, presented by the Wyland Foundation and a half dozen other supporters, addresses the growing importance of educating consumers about the many ways they use water. The 2017 challenge engaged individuals in how they are part of the solutions to reduce our impact on our lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands through conservation. A resolution to join this organization is anticipated to be submitted to City Council for consideration at the February 20, 2018, meeting. In an effort to keep educating and promoting Water Conservation as a Beverly Hills Way of Life, staff is working to curb usage by the City s most excessive water users, educate residents on the large amount of water waste one leaking toilet can produce (up to 200 gallons an hour) and educate gardeners on efficient irrigation. In addition, staff will continue to focus efforts on notifying customers of potential leaks on their properties, conducting site visits and working with customers with high utility bills. FISCAL IMPACT None at this time. RECOMMENDATION This report is for informational purposes only. By Page 3 of 3 1/31/2018

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5 City ofbeverty Hills 345 Foothill Road Beverly Hills, California p (310) ff310) only applicable to no irrigation for turf on street medians and parkways? What if there are also trees that need to be watered in these locations? What is acceptable? What if minimal water is used to keep the reduces dust pollution, cools the environment, keeps soil alive and increases rainwater infiltration. Bullet point 7 Changing out the landscape to water wise plants is not conducive in some high.traffic parkways. In plant material alive and has no run off, or the location contains bioswales for stormwater capture? addition, drip irrigation is not beneficial (or feasible) in parkways where there is a tot of foot traffic. Eliminating all irrigation to these areas will be long-term counterproductive. Plant material cleans the air, Irrigate turf on public Street medians or parkways: More clarification is needed. Is this upon request is not realistic? Will this prohibition also apply to large banquet facilities where time is of the essence and serving water Bullet point 6 - restaurants stilt bring water when guests arrive without asking. Providing clear, concise guidance on the ensure success, a formalized training for food service staff would be beneficial. Who will supply the required table tents: the local water supplier, the State or the restaurant? To better Language for replicable table tents for the tables wilt greatly assist restaurants in training their staff. Serve drinking water other than by request: More clarification is needed. Some Under The Prohibitions (i.e. Californians shall not...) : requesting further clarification and suggestions to the State s proposal. customers in meeting or exceeding State standards. In an effort to achieve those goals, the City is As a water provider, the City of Beverly Hills supports water conservation efforts and supports our Unreasonable Use. QUALiTY CONTROL BOARDS. CHAPTER 3.5 Conservation and the Prevention of Waste and WATERS, DIVISION 3. STATE WATER RESOURCES CONTROL BOARD AND REGIONAL WATER Thank you for the opportunity to provide input to the proposed regulatory action on TITLE 23. Ms. Jeanine Townsend: RE: Comment Letter Prohibiting Wasteful Water Use Practices Sacramento, CA Jeanine Townsend, Clerk to the Board December State Water Resources Control Board P.O. Box 100

6 homeowners that still want turf for their homes as play areas for their kids and dogs. If changes need to the soil beneath reducing effective groundwater infiltration. Turf grass is not water intensive if watered and maintained properly. Cities need to lead the way for proper turf grass watering for the many City of Beverly Hills 345 foothill Road Beverly Hills, California p (310) f(310) cc: Debby figoni, Water Conservation Administrator Shana Epstein Public Works Director Sincerely, If you have any questions or need any further clarification, please feel free to contact my office. this opportunity to provide input in to your proposed regulatory action. Again, the City of Beverly Hills supports and encourages water efficiency as a way of life. We appreciate For instance, staff could be instructed on how to evaluation guests choices via a video, with minimum Providing a requirement for training for hotel/motel staff on whether or not linens are to be laundered frequently noted that regardless of what the guest indicates, the linens are replaced daily. Like food time commitment from the hotel/motel. daily would greatly improve the success of this program. Notification to the guest is helpful, but it is service training, hotel staff training can be quickly and inexpensively implemented with a positive impact. understand these items? Who will inspect the sites to ensure that the placards/stickers/clings are in the responsibility of the water agency, State or other agency to ensure that the hotels/motels receive and rooms and in readable condition? Please clarify what the notice of this option will be (printed material or information on the hotel s website or TV station). Also, clarify what the message should include, i.e.: a minimum message, what languages. Provide a mechanism for printing and distributing the notices to the hotels/motels. Is it the The Requirement for Hotels and Motels: respective Section? The penalties seem to omit public agencies that may own/maintain public spaces. How would it deal with entities that are mutual water providers, schools or other special circumstances? agencies. Can the violations be applied to any public agency that owns the property and violates the Clarification is needed for homeowners associations, community service organizations and government Penalties for Particular Entities: These positive upgrades will also need time to trickle up to the cities residents and businesses. wisely are needed to allow cities time to change their practices and to budget for these expensive changes. be made, proper, long-term solutions and educational opportunities detailing how to irrigate and plant turf. Many water wise landscapes use rock as a mulch cover which heats the environment and can harden Furthermore, many water wise landscapes are not watered wisely and use as much water as cool season