Lois Scott transformed her El Cajon home’s green front lawn with rose bushes into a colorful water-wise landscape with a little help from her friends. Now called “Nana’s Garden,” it is this year’s Otay Water District Landscape Makeover Contest winner.
Water agencies in San Diego County are sharing outdoor water-efficiency tips during “Smart Irrigation Month.”
July was chosen as Smart Irrigation Month in 2005 since its traditionally the month of peak demand for outdoor water use in the county. Landscape irrigation consumes 50% of the typical California home’s monthly water use.
A charming 1925 La Mesa home featuring a rich tapestry of thriving low-water use plants won the 2023 Helix Water District Landscape Makeover Contest. Homeowner Joy Andrea, a retired schoolteacher and La Mesa resident for more than 50 years, created a landscape with a tremendous amount of curb appeal, reflecting the character of the home.
A retired grandmother in East County built an award-winning water-wise landscape with some help from the kids in her neighborhood.
Lois Scott, who once worked as a registered nurse, decided to address years of high-water usage, a lack of rain and “rabbit-yard invaders” by converting her once green front lawn into a water-wise landscape she now calls “Nana’s Garden.”
Instead of rose bushes and grass, Lois turned to native California plants like succulents which require less water to maintain. With help from her best friend and young neighbors, Lois gradually made the transition.
South Coast Water District ratepayers will see an average increase of 7% in their water rates and a 12% average increase in their sewer rates starting July 1, following a governing board vote on June 22.
On average, starting July 1, residents may see a $5.79 increase in their water bills and an $8.99 increase in their sewer bills, according to South Coast Water.
After holding three public workshops on water, recycled water and sewer rate studies and conducting a revenue needs analysis, the district concluded the rate increase is necessary to provide “financial stability and funding reserves” according to a SCWD staff report.
In a prepared statement, SCWD said the rate increases are the result of the “implementation of critical capital improvement projects, meeting our debt service convergence to maintain our credit rating, and maintaining our reserves to meet the District’s targets.”
The agreement reached in May by California, Arizona and Nevada to conserve 3 million acre-feet of Colorado River water is reassuring news for all who rely on it — farms, cities, rural communities, tribes and the environment. It benefits American consumers in general who depend on the region’s farms for much of our safe, healthy, affordable food supply, and Southern California residents who receive farm-to-urban water transfers from the Imperial Valley specifically, helping protect them from drought-related water shortages.
The Imperial Irrigation District Board of Directors saluted the district’s completion of its newest water conservation and operational reservoir located just east of the city, which will conserve 400 acre-feet of water annually and provide water operational flexibility to growers in the valley’s Northend.
The new operational reservoir, recently dedicated by the IID Board as the Lloyd Allen Water Conservation Operational Reservoir, is the first mid-lateral canal reservoir constructed through IID’s System Conservation Program. It has a total storage capacity of 40 acre-feet and is located along the district’s E Lateral Canal — the longest in the district’s delivery system at 13 miles in length.
In addition to conserving water, the new reservoir supports the district’s On-Farm Efficiency Conservation Program, providing improved water delivery service to growers.
The IID Board visited the site of the new reservoir on Friday, June 30, as part of a larger tour of water operational facilities in the Valley’s Northend.
During Mark McBroom’s 40 years of farming in the Imperial Valley, he’s had to adapt to changing climate conditions and water availability. After California, Arizona and Nevada came to an agreement in May to reduce their Colorado River water usage, McBroom may soon have to adapt again. Imperial County is the driest in California, only getting 2 to 3 inches of rainfall every year. So, farmers in the region get the vast majority of their water from the Colorado River.
San Diego County Water Authority General Manager Sandra L. Kerl retired June 29, after more than 40 years of public service. Deputy General Manager Dan Denham is acting GM until the Water Authority Board of Directors permanently fills the position.
Kerl’s tenure at the Water Authority included 10 years as deputy general manager and four years as the agency’s top staff member during a period of unprecedented uncertainty regionally and nationally.
San Diego County Water Authority General Manager Sandra L. Kerl retired Thursday after more than 40 years of public service, with Deputy General Manager Dan Denham taking over on an interim basis.
Kerl’s tenure at the water authority included 10 years as deputy general manager and four years as the agency’s top staff member during a period of unprecedented drought regionally and nationally.
“Sandy’s vision and management skills have been crucial in successfully navigating the challenges of an extreme drought while ensuring stability through the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mel Katz, chair of the water authority’s board. “Her deep experience with water issues, collaborative management style, and can-do spirit guided the agency through an unprecedented period of change.”
