One of the largest cities in the North State, Redding is also known for its stiflingly hot summers. Cutting back on water use there may prove especially challenging.
John Wendele is the water utility manager at the City of Redding, which draws its drinking water from Shasta Lake and some groundwater wells. He says when the mercury rises, so does demand.
“It’s very hot here in the summer as you know,” Wendele said. “We see about a fourfold increase in summertime use over wintertime use.”
That summertime use catapulted Redding onto the list of water districts ordered by Sacramento to save the most. The district, and by extension its customers, are under orders to use 36 percent less water than in 2013. While that’s the largest percentage in the state, Redding is far from alone. When asked how confident he is of achieving that goal Wendele admitted it may prove a challenge.
“I wouldn’t use the word confident — we’re hopeful,” he said. “We think that if we have mass compliance, we have widespread compliance with the outdoor watering restrictions, that we will achieve the goal, but it’s going to require an effort on the part of individuals as well as on the part of the city.”
That effort won’t extend to higher water bills for those who fail to conserve. Wendele said the city doesn’t have the staffing.
“Here at the City of Redding we have nearly 30,000 water accounts, and we can’t monitor all 30,000 of these accounts to see whether individuals are making a 36 percent reduction,” Wendele said. “We just can’t do it, it’s not physically possible.
Wendele said the utility is focusing its energy on controlling outdoor watering. In addition to statewide restrictions, Redding created its own — watering by hand is permitted only between 6 and 9 in the morning and 6 and 9 in the evening.
New stringent rules also cover automatic irrigation. Many residents will have to reset their timers. Automatic sprinklers can only run from 9 at night to 7 in the morning. Additionally, addresses ending in an odd number may only use sprinklers Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays; those whose addresses end in an even number can use them on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
For more information on the city of Redding's drought response, visit the city's utilities website.
