Drought: Most Coachella Valley water agencies decreased usage in June

Erin Rode, Palm Springs Desert Sun
·6 min read
Water absorbs into the underground aquifer at a recharge pond in Palm Springs, near the Windy Point neighborhood, seen in the background below Mt. San Jacinto.
Water absorbs into the underground aquifer at a recharge pond in Palm Springs, near the Windy Point neighborhood, seen in the background below Mt. San Jacinto.

Four of the six water agencies serving the Coachella Valley used less water in June 2022 than in June 2020, a marked improvement from May, when just one of the six agencies had decreased usage compared to two years prior.

Myoma Dunes, Coachella Valley Water District, Mission Springs Water District and Desert Water Agency all decreased their June water use compared to 2020, according to data released by the State Water Resources Control Board last week.

In July 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom called for Californians to reduce water usage by 15% compared to 2020 levels.

The calls for increased conservation come as climate change has contributed to the western United States experiencing one of the worst droughts on record, with a recent study finding that the current megadrought beginning in 2000 is the driest in at least 1,200 years. More than 97% of California is currently experiencing severe, extreme or exceptional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Myoma Dunes posted the most water savings in June, reducing use by 18.2% compared to the 2020 baseline. Coachella Valley Water District and Desert Water Agency saw decreases of 10.5% and 9%, while Mission Springs Water District decreased its June water use by 7.9%.

Coachella's Water Division and Indio Water Authority both increased their June water use compared to 2020, by 14.8% and 1.7%, respectively. However, the two east valley water agencies also use less per capita than other parts of the valley to begin with, leaving them with "less fat to trim," said Coachella Utilities Manager Castulo Estrada.

Coachella's Water Division, Indio Water Agency, and Mission Springs Water District each used between 137 and 172 gallons per person per day in June. Meanwhile, the valley's other three water districts are among the highest users in the state.

Out of about 400 water districts in the state, Myoma Dunes and Desert Water Agency ranked fifth and sixth on the list for gallons per person per day, and Coachella Valley Water District ranked 11th. Those three agencies used between 290 and 379 gallons per person per day. In June, the statewide average was 101 gallons.

Gallons per day per residential customer in June: 

  • Myoma Dunes: 379

  • Desert Water Agency: 328

  • Coachella Valley Water District: 290

  • Indio Water Agency: 172

  • Coachella Water Division: 164

  • Mission Springs Water District: 137

Conservation improving statewide

For the past year, Californians have struggled to meet Newsom's goal of a 15% reduction compared to 2020. Cumulatively, statewide water use is down by just 2.7% from July 2021 through June 2022, compared to the 2020 baseline numbers.

But statewide water use in June 2022 was 7.6% lower than in June 2020, more than double the statewide savings of 3.1% in May, and the continuation of a positive trend after usage increased in March and April by 18.7% and 17.8%.

The improvement comes after several new restrictions on water use, such as a statewide ban on watering "non-functional" turf in the commercial, institutional, and industrial sectors that took effect June 10. The state water board estimates that the ban will save between 156,000 and 260,000 acre-feet per year, the equivalent of water used by 780,000 households in a year.

The board also adopted an emergency regulation that required urban water suppliers to step up their efforts to reduce water use to what the state calls "Level 2."  These actions vary by district, but in the Coachella Valley, they largely include banning spray irrigation during daylight hours and requiring restaurants to only serve water upon request.

"During the hot and dry summer, water use typically increases substantially because plants are thirstier. So, the fact that we saw more water savings in June suggests that aggressive actions taken by the state and by local suppliers are taking hold," stated a state water board press release on the June figures. 

In June 2022, all of the state's 10 hydrologic regions decreased their water use compared to June 2020, including the Colorado River region. The hot and dry southeastern corner of the state was the only hydrologic region in California to see an increase in water use in May 2022 compared to May 2020. But in June 2022, water use in the region was down by 4.2%.

So far, 17 California water agencies have achieved Newsom's goal of reducing cumulative water use by 15% compared to 2020 baseline figures. Those agencies are mostly concentrated in the northern, wetter part of the state.

Homes along Montego Bay Drive in Bermuda Dunes Country Club have grass yards and swimming pools and border a golf course. The area is served by the Myoma Dunes Water Company, which has been reducing water use but still uses the most per capita of any Coachella Valley water agency.
Homes along Montego Bay Drive in Bermuda Dunes Country Club have grass yards and swimming pools and border a golf course. The area is served by the Myoma Dunes Water Company, which has been reducing water use but still uses the most per capita of any Coachella Valley water agency.

In the Coachella Valley, Myoma Dunes is currently in the lead for cumulative savings, with a 6.8% decrease in water use from July 2021 through June 2022 compared to the 2020 baseline months. Mission Springs Water District has also cumulatively decreased its water use by 1.4%.

The other four Coachella Valley water agencies have cumulatively increased their water use. Local agencies have taken issue with the use of 2020 as a baseline, since the Coachella Valley's seasonal population and tourism were impacted by the pandemic that year, resulting in fewer visitors and less water use than normal.

However, representatives of those agencies say further conservation is expected through incentive programs and water use restrictions.

"The effect of the restrictions going into effect in June and enforcement on those restrictions is massive," said Desert Water Agency spokesperson Ashley Metzger.

Desert Water Agency has seen a "big uptick" in water waste reports and participation in incentive programs, according to Metzger.

The agency approved 17 lawn conversion projects in May, 28 in June, and around 40 in July. Desert Water Agency increased its turf rebate amount from $2 to $3 per square feet in July, after Coachella Valley Water District did the same in April. Coachella Valley Water District is also partnering with Rancho Mirage to offer a $6 per square foot turf conversion rebate for customers there. 

Starting this month, CVWD customers will also receive higher water bills if they fail to reduce their monthly outdoor water use to 10% below their outdoor water budget. 

These financial penalties are expected to impact between 25% and 37% of CVWD customers. They will not impact the roughly 60% of customers who are already using less than 90% of their outdoor water budget. That figure shows that "our customers are doing really well," said CVWD spokesperson Lorraine Garcia.

"We definitely are expecting to see numbers next month that show a continual trend of making conservation a way of life. We encourage that all the time, and we're moving in the right direction," said Garcia.

Erin Rode covers the environment for the Desert Sun. Reach her at erin.rode@desertsun.com or on Twitter at @RodeErin. 

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: California drought: Coachella Valley decreases water use