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The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California has declared a water shortage emergency and starting June 1st, there will be mandatory water cutbacks.
An “Emergency Water Conservation Program,” has been implemented, restricting outdoor watering to one day a week in Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties. The restrictions are expected to take effect on June 1. The shortage affects nearly 6 million residents and comes at a time when one-third of the region “faces an emergency because of reliance on severely limited NorCal supplies,” the agency said. This is all due to California experiencing one of the driest starts to spring in decades, with the first three months of the year being the driest in recorded state history despite minor precipitation coming from late storms. Without a heavy dose of April and May showers, the state’s drought is projected to most likely worsen, and could lead to stricter rules on water use along with another devastating wildfire season up and down the state.
Also due to record-dry conditions, the water supply in California’s major reservoirs are at a record low, and the agency doesn’t have enough water to meet demand.
Six million people are forced to cut their outdoor watering to one day a week.