L.A. is conserving water at record levels, but it’s not enough as drought worsens
A new report from state officials has highlighted Los Angeles as one of the worst offenders when it comes to water conservation. The study shows that while most of the Peninsula has seen a small drop in water users, residents of downtown L.A. are saving nearly 3.5 million gallons per day. In the coming months, the city could save an additional two million gallons per day, bringing the total number of saved gallons to nearly a half million. These are all small amounts, but when a city saves almost a third of all residents’ water use, there is a lot at stake.
“When water is no longer available to us, there are consequences, and the consequences of lack of water are far more serious for the people of Los Angeles,” says Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.
Despite the loss of nearly 100,000 Californians per day due to drought, nearly 50% of local residents would choose to move if the situation continued to worsen.
That’s why we’re so thankful for people across the county who are conserving water. We have a lot of work to do to protect our future, but the people of L.A. are doing an incredible job of saving water.
Los Angeles has set the world’s water conservation record since 2002, when the city cut water usage by an average of 1.1 million gallons per day. By August of 2016, the water conservation program had reduced water usage by an average of 0.5 million gallons per day.
The L.A. Water Department is now set to cut water usage by almost a quarter million gallons per day between October of 2016 and January of 2018.
“This is the most effective program we’ve ever put in place, and it only takes a few minutes of a couple of hours a day,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis.
When drought strikes L.A.
Residents of other cities across the nation have embraced water conservation. In fact, in just the first few days of the drought, Seattle saw some of its greatest savings, with the largest reduction coming in April.
The biggest water savings, however, have come in Los Angeles. L.A. officials say the savings are the result of a long-
