City Announces One Day Per Week Outdoor Watering Schedule in Effect Sept. 1

The City of Pasadena announced in an early morning statement Wednesday that effective Sept. 1, the Pasadena Water and Power service area is under a one-day-per-week outdoor irrigation schedule. The watering schedule allows even-numbered street addresses to water on Mondays and odd-numbered street addresses to water on Tuesdays. Outdoor watering must take place before 9 a.m. or after 6 p.m. 

California is contending with unprecedented drought conditions, with the last three years setting the record as the driest three-year period in state history. These conditions, along with severe to exceptional drought conditions across the southwestern United States, are significantly impacting water supplies, leading to critically low storage levels on the State Water Project and Colorado River systems, and declining local groundwater levels, according to the City statement.

“Every drop of water that we save now puts us in a better position in the future. Pasadena continues to be a leader in conservation, and residents and businesses are making great strides in water savings,” says PWP Interim General Manager Jeffrey Kightlinger. “Now is the time for customers to make long-term investments in water-use efficiency by making changes like removing thirsty turf and replacing it with drought-tolerant landscaping, and upgrading to more efficient outdoor watering systems.”

Adding to the need to save more water, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) requires a two-week emergency shutdown of an upstream MWD feeder to complete an urgent repair in early September. PWP will continue to receive water deliveries from MWD during the shutdown. But as the supply source will be switched to severely limited State Water Project supplies for the duration of the shutdown, MWD is calling for a significant reduction in water use.

Pasadena residents and businesses are also encouraged to take the following steps:

• Continue to water trees by hand on a weekly basis.
• Replace turf with drought-tolerant and California native plants, which use less water and are more resilient to heat and drought.
• Adjust sprinklers and automated irrigation systems to run no more than one day per week.
• Add  mulch around shrubs, flower beds and trees to help reduce water evaporation.
• Collect water while showering or from the kitchen sink in a bucket, and use it to water trees and shrubs.
• Optimize irrigation systems by retrofitting to a drip irrigation system.
• Repair all leaks and adjust sprinkler spray to avoid water waste.
• Update all water fixtures and appliances to high-efficiency models.
• Use pool covers to reduce water loss.

More information on the MWD’s call for suspending outdoor watering during its emergency pipeline shutdown from Sept. 6-20 is available here:  mwdh2o.com .

For more information on current drought conditions and water conservation, visit: PWPweb.com/SaveWater