Morgan Hill declares Level 1 water supply shortage

The city of Morgan Hill is declaring a Level 1 Water Shortage and will be implementing a number of water-saving measures.

In partnership with the Santa Clara Valley Water District, city council members this week adopted two resolutions in response to the ongoing drought conditions.

Previously, the city council adopted a water supply shortage ordinance that addresses water waste and contains a number of ongoing everyday limits aimed at reducing water waste. A complete list of the ongoing limits is available online.

During a Level I condition, the following provisions apply:

• Obligation to fix leaks, breaks or malfunctions: All leaks, breaks, or other malfunctions in the water user’s plumbing or distribution system must be repaired within seventy-two hours of notification by the city unless other arrangements are made with the city.

• No washing down hard or paved surfaces: Washing down hard or paved surfaces is prohibited except when necessary to alleviate safety or sanitary hazards.

• Limited watering days: The city council has limited watering days to a maximum of three days per week, establishing Monday, Wednesday and Friday as watering/irrigation days from April through October. That will go down to one day – Wednesdays – in November.

The city council also approved moving forward with an agreement to implement the WaterSmart Conservation Program, a specific program that will allow the city to create a “customized water relationship” with residents. Each water utility customer will get a bimonthly report detailing their specific “Water Score,” comparing their water usage to that of similar homes in the community. By informing customers about their water use and how it compares to others, many customers become more conscious of their water use and eliminate wasteful practices.

The Santa Clara County Water District will split the annual costs for the program with the city of Morgan Hill.

The city has already reduced landscape irrigation by 20 percent, eliminating the use of water in fire drills and training, washing fire engines only as necessary, evaluating all plumbing fixtures to ensure they are low flow and replacing fixtures as needed at all fire stations and adjusting water system flushing schedules, among other efforts.