You are now in Media Coverage San Diego County category.

Metropolitan Water District Launches Turf Replacement Program for Sustainable Landscaping

/in , /by /WestsideToday.comby Dolores Quintana

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s Turf Replacement program aims to update homeowners’ landscaping practices by encouraging the removal of existing grass and replacing it with organic, drought-tolerant alternatives. With a focus on water conservation and sustainability, the program seeks to combat the effects of water scarcity and promote responsible water usage among residents.

It is essential to note that synthetic turf is not an approved option for conversion under this program. Instead, the emphasis is on promoting organic and eco-friendly landscaping solutions that align with the city’s environmental goals.

Full Story

The IID’s Water Rights – a Balancing Act of Responsibility and Sustainability

/in , , /by /The Desert Reviewby Wally Leimgruber

Water is the lifeblood of civilizations, and the management of this precious resource has always been a challenging task. The Imperial Irrigation District (IID) holds a significant stake in water rights, playing a vital role in water distribution and agriculture. This essay delves into the history, challenges, and strategies employed by IID to manage water rights responsibly and sustainably.

Full Story

Vista Irrigation District Landscape Winner Complements Home Design

/in , , /by /Water News Network Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Vista Homeowner Diane Krupnak redesigned her front yard to save water and won the 2023 Vista Irrigation District WaterSmart Landscape Contest.

The annual contest recognizes outstanding watersmart residential landscapes based on the criteria of overall attractiveness, appropriate plant selection, design, appropriate maintenance, and efficient irrigation methods.

Full Story

Valley Center Has Grown With its Water District

/in , , /by /Valley Roadrunner by David Ross Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Making the desert bloom. That’s what our local water district has accomplished in the nearly 70 years of its existence.

Although settlers first came to Valley Center in the 1860s, the town’s population stayed at just a few hundred people throughout the first part of the 20th Century. On the eve of the formation of the district, the population was about 900, according to the Valley Center History Museum. But in 1954 the voters of the community voted overwhelmingly to create the Valley Center Municipal Water District (VCMWD). From then on, the town has grown with the water district, which made it possible to grow to the population it is today, around 22,000 (VCMWD’s total service area population is 29,700.)

What made that all possible was the creation of the San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA) in 1944 and the completion of the 1st San Diego Aqueduct in the later 1940s’s. The Aqueduct’s purpose was to bring water from the Colorado River to San Diego County, from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (the “Met”) to provide something more than the area’s limited groundwater and streams that flowed during rainy seasons like we have had this year, but otherwise not so much.

Full Story

Every Drop Counts: Water-Wise Landscaping and Design Takes Creativity

/in , , /by /Pasadena Weekly by Morgan Owen

Having an eco-friendly yard doesn’t have to mean replacing a lawn with sand and succulents. Ann-Marie Benz, California Native Plant Society’s horticulture program manager, says creating a drought-resilient landscape has a bad reputation. Creating a native, water-wise yard can be rewarding — and done with a personal flair.

Full Story

Six Student Artists Win 2023 Otay Poster Contest

/in , , /by /Water News Network

Six students from schools in the Otay Water District are the winners of the annual Student Poster Contest. More than 53 students submitted entries from schools in Chula Vista, El Cajon, and Spring Valley. The poster art depicts the value of water and using water wisely.

Full Story

He Wanted a ‘Low-Water, Colorful, Smell-Good Garden.’ But First, the Lawn Had to Go

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Lisa Boone

On a closely packed street in Inglewood, where single-family home after single-family home overlooks a manicured lawn, a spectacular garden filled with California native plants reaches to the sky and spills onto the sidewalk.

In Brian Bautista’s yard, upright showy penstemon, aromatic hummingbird sage, hardy toyon trees, and two types of milkweed — dramatic plants requiring little water — attract birds, butterflies and bees and flourish amid the Bermuda grass lawns.

Full Story

Lake Levels Rise Across Region

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby J. Harry Jones

Winter storms that have dented the drought across much of California have also boosted reservoir levels in several San Diego County lakes — especially those fed by storm runoff.

Full Story

Low-Income LADWP Customers’ Bills Are About to Rise. What Help is Available?

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Jon Healey

As Angelenos wither under another hot summer, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is shrinking a discount program that helped low-income families pay their bills.

The utility has no choice; the subsidies that funded the DWP’s discounted water rates were declared illegal by a Superior Court judge in May. That discount will disappear Thursday, although others will remain in place, the DWP said in a letter to customers.

Full Story

Sweetwater Authority Welcomes Roberto Yano as Assistant General Manager

/in , , /by /Water News Network Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Sweetwater Authority has brought on Roberto Yano as the agency’s new Assistant General Manager. With 30 years of experience in public works, engineering and leadership at the City of Chula Vista and the City of National City, Yano brings a wealth of relevant knowledge and expertise to the Authority.

Full Story