Roseville seeks 20 percent water use reduction

Today, the City of Roseville’s Environmental Utilities Department announced a new water conservation alert asking customers to voluntarily reduce their water use by 20 percent for the remainder of the year.  The alert was issued by the city following an announcement by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) on the water supply situation at Bureau facilities, one of which is Folsom Lake.  The city, which gets most of its water from Folsom Lake and also relies on higher lake levels to help distribute water it purchases from other agencies, plans to continue working with its customers to reduce water use consistent with the Governor’s call for a statewide water use reduction of 20 percent.

The announcement by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation sets Roseville’s water allocation at 65 percent of normal for the remainder of the year.  In addition, higher lake levels make it possible for the City to pump water it purchases from the Placer County Water Agency (PCWA) to city customers to make up for the shortage in USBR water.  This improvement in water supply conditions allows the city to move from mandatory water reductions to voluntary water reductions.

 ‘This new voluntary approach allows us to continue working with our customers to reduce their water use and to meet the Governor’s 20 percent water-reduction call to action,’ said Derrick Whitehead, director of Environmental Utilities.  ‘Last year, our customers responded to the call to reduce their water use and we are confident that we can work with our customers again to meet the voluntary 20 percent water-reduction target.’

The city is encouraging its customers to take actions now to reduce water use, such as:

-Reviewing outside irrigation schedules and reducing run times for sprinklers;

-Watering with the weather conditions in mind;Check homes for leaks in irrigation,   toilets and other water using fixtures;

-Retrofitting faucets and showerheads with water saving aerators and other devices;

-Covering swimming pools to reduce evaporation during hot weather;

-Taking advantage of free city programs like Water Wise House Calls; free water saving devices; and water saving rebates from the City of Roseville.

‘We are encouraging our customers to call us as we can help them find ways to save water,’ said Whitehead.  ‘In many cases, saving 20 percent is fairly easy to do and we are here to help our customers where we can to meet this goal.’

Roseville residents can call the city’s Water Conservation Division at 774-5761.