SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Californians failed to significantly cut back on their water consumption in July.
The Sacramento Bee reports new data released Tuesday shows residents reduced their water consumption by 1.8% compared to 2020. Gov. Gavin Newsom had asked people to voluntarily cut back their water use by 15%.
State Water Resources Board chair Joaquin Esquivel said the state will have to do more on conservation. But he was hopeful the numbers would improve. The water conservation numbers for August won't be released until mid-October.
Association of California Water Agencies Executive Director Dave Eggerton said water agencies are ramping up public information campaigns. He called the conservation numbers a "promising start."
Overall, the picture in Sacramento County has been good. Water customers in the Sacramento County Water Agency decreased water usage by 6.4 percent. Customers in the city of Sacramento decreased usage by 3.8 percent. In Yolo County, city of West Sacramento customers had also been doing a good job conserving, showing a 3.3 percent drop in water usage, city of Davis water customers reduced usage by 1.2 percent. Areas in Folsom and Elk Grove saw slight increases in water usage.
In other areas local water usage also increased in July 2021 compared to the same time last year. In San Joaquin County, customers in the city of Stockton increased water usage by 7.1 percent. Stanislaus residents who are water customers in the city of Modesto increased usage by 1.9 percent. In Placer County, customers in the City of Roseville increased water usage by 7.4 percent.
To view more data, click here.
