Facing a drought unprecedented in Rancho Murieta’s history, the Community Services District board of directors voted Wednesday night to declare a Stage 2 drought emergency. Under the declaration, residents are asked to voluntarily reduce water consumption 20 percent this month. The reduction becomes mandatory Feb. 1. All landscape watering will be prohibited from Feb. 1 until March 9, since irrigation isn’t necessary in late winter. After that, watering will be limited to twice weekly. Plans for tiered water pricing to encourage conservation will be brought to the board’s next meeting.
On Thursday, CSD staff said the Feb. 1-March 9 mandatory reduction had been removed from its plans. See comment below.
The community’s reservoirs -- Clementia, Chesbro and Calero -- are currently about 60 percent full. The CSD has been unable to divert water from the Cosumnes River since the diversion season began Nov. 1 because river flows haven’t met the pumping threshold of 70 cubic feet per second.
In other business, the board moved forward on plans for water treatment plant expansion, including financing $3 million, the CSD’s share of the cost, from the district’s reserves. Staff estimated the net ratepayer increase to repay the reserves at about $1.40 a month. A resolution on financing will be brought to the board next month.
Full coverage is upcoming at RanchoMurieta.com. Read more » about Drought emergency prompts water cutbacks
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