“While this low initial state water project announcement was anticipated, it still sends a solemn message up and down California — we all must immediately reduce water use to stretch available supplies,” said Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the wholesale supplier to local agencies such as Glendale and Burbank.
The plan released Thursday to fulfill only 15% of orders statewide is still preliminary. Every year, the figures are adjusted on a monthly basis as new rainfall and snow depths are measured over the winter.
For example, the initial allocation plan in 1993 was put at 10% of total water shipment requests — 5% less than what was announced Thursday — but that was eventually increased to fulfill all statewide orders as the winter wore on, according to the Department of Water Resources.
The final allocation plan is usually announced in April, giving local agencies time to prepare for drastic cuts.
Glendale Water & Power is revising the city’s water conservation ordinance, which includes mandatory rationing controls and penalties, to be more readable. The new ordinance should be ready for City Council review and adoption “so that it can be in place if the winter turns out to be drier and rationing is necessary,” Assistant General Manager Peter Kavounas said.
The long-term weather outlook isn’t promising to water authorities.
California’s weather cycle is stuck in a “neutral phase,” meaning the winter could go either way, said Eric Boldt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
Last year, total rainfall for downtown Los Angeles was at about 12 inches, or about 85% of normal, Boldt said.
