Oceanside urged residents Monday to cut back their water use, following a similar move by the city of San Diego in response to the State Water Board and Gov. Gavin Newsom's executive order requiring water suppliers to implement mandatory restrictions.
"The Water Utilities Department is complying with state regulations as the drought progresses," said Rosemarie Chora, the city's Water Utilities Division manager. "As summer approaches, we ask residents and businesses to do their part and be mindful of water usage."
The Oceanside City Council adopted a revised drought ordinance last spring, which contains six drought response levels with increasing restrictions as the city moves to higher drought levels. Oceanside will remain at a Level 1, but the city will be highly encouraging Level 2 drought actions.
Oceanside is recommending residents and businesses reduce irrigation to three times a week between 6 p.m. and 10 a.m., keep sprinkler irrigation to 10 minutes per station, fix leaks within 72 hours and stop the use of ornamental fountains unless using recirculated water.
Additionally, the state has prohibited irrigation by commercial customers of turf considered to be non-functional. Exceptions include turf used for gatherings or community activities such as parks, sports fields or cemeteries.
Most of San Diego's water is purchased from the San Diego County Water Authority, which has determined that the region's water supply is currently stable but the "dire drought in Northern California and throughout the West requires all water customers to help reduce water use," according to an authority statement.
