Results tagged “conservation”

The end of Daylight Savings Time means more than just gaining an extra hour of sleep. To many, it's changing out fire alarm batteries and checking up on earthquake supplies. And now with water and energy conservation as a big theme in L.A., the LADWP is advising the public to not forget about adjusting automatic sprinklers as it could save you a citation. And considering that sunset will be at 5 p.m. tonight, you might want to change your lighting timer.

Earlier today, we told you about the Gibbon Research Center up in Santa Clarita (they're having a vegan breakfast fundraiser on Sunday morning) where every morning, they sing--it's a territorial thing. On a recent visit to the center, we were very lucky to hear them for about 20 minutes and got a little of it on video.

Los Angeles City Councilman Greig smith has brought up some legitimate points in the recent drought-related debates, but his most recent announcement about his scofflaw watering may be pushing it. Yesterday at a committee meeting, the Northwest Valley representative said he was challenging the current water laws by watering his lawn three times a week for 8 minutes. "And my grass is greener than it's ever been, and I bet I'm using less water," he said.

As firefighters get an upper hand on the Station Fire in portions of Acton, officials with the L.A. Department of Water & Power feel relieved enough to announce a decreased threat to two of their 500 KV lines. If those lines were to be cut off from the city's power grid, there was the potential of blackouts due to the mixture of hot weather with increased power consumption and reserve power plants not being able to handle that demand on energy.

Officials with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa tell NBC4 that the illegal use of sprinkers at his city-owned mansion, The Getty House in Windsor Square, was probably due to "a program malfunction" and now has been fixed. They thanked NBC4 for pointing out the problem and has the Department of Parks and Recreation "double-checking the sprinkler system to make sure it's working right." The good news is that the city has reduced water and energy consumption in record breaking numbers. Despite the illegal sprinkler goof, the announcements help him with his goal of making Los Angeles "the greenest big city in America.”

For the second month in a row, Los Angeles as a whole--residents, businesses, government--have reduced water usage to record breaking levels, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced today. Major strides in energy savings have also been made this year.

Although he tells the denizens of Los Angeles to cut down on their water use or face fines and higher bills, Mayor Villaraigosa's city-owned mansion has had its lawn watered during illegal hours several times, NBC's Joel Grover found in a month long investigation.

         

After eight and a half years of nine-to-five work and three Spiderman franchises, Ian Shive had enough. Like most us, we all wish we could just grab a camera and travel to earn a living. But like most of us, we don't. Shive is the exception.

The LADWP took notice of last week's "Comment of the Week" about breaking city water conservation rules in order to sustainably grow your own veggies. They say it's doable, so take listen up, says spokesman Brooks Baker in an e-mail:

In a discussion about the upcoming trend (and hopefully long-term habit) of residents taking part in urban farming and apartment gardening, commenter trishells points out her illegal use of water under current city ordinances. However, she has a great point:

Water use by Los Angeles residents and businesses were down by 11% in June when compared to June 2008 making it the lowest demand in 32 years, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power announced today. June 1st of this year marked the beginning of a new water conservation law aimed mainly at sprinkler usage, limiting it to certain hours on Mondays and Thursdays, and a new "shortage year" rate structure.

Faced with multiple drought years and the fact that 85% of Los Angeles' water is imported, Los Angeles and other cities are taking a hard look at every way to conserve and curb water use. A new city ordinance was voted on unanimously by the City Council this morning and will be sent to Mayor Villaraigosa for a signature. The ordinance, brought forth by Councilmembers Eric Garcetti and Jan Perry, will set new water efficiency guidelines for toilets, urinals, faucets, showerheads, dishwashers, single-pass cooling systems, and cooling towers in new buildings and for the replacement of broken fixtures in existing buildings. It would save an estimated average of 1 billion gallons of water per year over the next 20 years. That's almost like if no one flushed a toilet in Los Angeles for over a month! The specifics of the ordinance are below:

A city proposal could do just that. Smart Sprinklers, as explained by the Catalina Island Conservancy's Isla Earth podcast, works like this: "a weather-based controller starts talking to your local weather station. It gets data about things like rainfall, air temperature, and wind speed. It then uses those data to figure out how much water your plants will need and how much will be lost to evaporation. It turns on the sprinklers to deliver just the right amount."

Here's what a citation from the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power looks like. Luckily, if its your first time, there's no monetary punishment, just a conversation with a conservation team member, which could be its own sort of punishment depending on who you are. If they visit you again, you're looking at $100 or more.

It's been proposed and pooh-poohed by the public before, but considering our drought, does treating sewage so it's drinkable gaining more public consensus in Los Angeles? It already has in Orange County at the world's largest modern reclamation plant that serves many of the county's residents.

You've probably seen this happen: it's raining, yet the sprinklers are working hard in a city park. Not such a smart idea in a drought, or anytime actually. This past week, new sprinkler regulations went into affect (.pdf info sheet), only allowing sprinkling use on Mondays and Thursdays and not between the times of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. For a few years now, there's been a more advanced sprinkler that knows the weather so if it's raining, it knows not to turn on. The Isla Earth podcast from the Catalina Island Conservancy explained in an older episode:

The moment the new water laws hit Monday, it's like the LA Department of Water & Power went bonkers with water conservation ideas. Today is a new door hanger program, in which the the hangers were given to the public via their print newspaper subscriptions. "LADWP door hangers are designed to help customers encourage their neighbors not to waste water and to avoid fines associated with violations of the City’s Water Conservation Ordinance," they explain. "On one side of the door hanger is a list of four common wasteful water practices, with a checkbox for each prohibited use. Neighbors, when they spot water being wasted on a neighbor’s property, can select the box or boxes that apply and leave the hanger anonymously on the neighbor’s door." Those four common wasteful practices are: excess water flowing over pavement and into gutters during irrigation or car washing, sprinklers are on more than twice a week, sprinklers are on during the day, broken or leaky sprinkler. You can also obtain them at any of the 14 LADWP Customer Service Centers.

Hello, June. Today means two basic new water rules. Firstly, no using sprinklers on days other than Monday and Thursdays. Easy enough, right? Well, if you're the tattling type and catch a neighbor breaking the new law, you can contact the LA Department of Water & Power's drought buster unit at (800) DIAL-DWP or via e-mail at waterconservationteam@ladwp.com. Also, new rates begin today trying to get people to reduce use by 15%. If not, you could be charged more. It's based on tiers, not what your average use has been over the last year so in theory, you're current habits may already be 15% under what they're looking for. Confused? Here's their Fact Sheet (.pdf) and their FAQ sheet (.pdf).

Beginning Monday, mandatory water conservation in Los Angeles begins. That means things like a different rate structure (.pdf) and a stricter sprinkler ordinance (.pdf). Speaking to watering lawns, which consumes the most amount of water in households, homeowners don't necessarily have to sprinkle anything. Isla Earth, the daily podcast from the Catalina Island Conservancy explains some xeriscaping basics in an episode from 2007 that are still relevant today:

LA City Council today approved the third phase of a water conservation ordinance aimed a reducing the consumption of this bitch-thirsty city. Soon, residents and businesses may only water their lawns and other landscaping on Mondays and Thursdays. An earlier phase, which prohibited watering between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. remains in effect. The new restriction begins on June 1st.

“I think we’re going to have to make some lifestyle changes...particularly how we use water outside,” said Bob Yamada, water resources manager for the San Diego County Water Authority before yesterday's decision by the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) to cut water supplies by 10% to agencies such as San Diego, Long Beach and Los Angeles.

The new and higher water rates being considered by the LA City Council today are meant to encourage residents to conserve. Translation: if you don't conserve water by at least 15%, then you could be paying a much costlier bill. However, if you already conserve water, you will not be penalized for not conserving another 15%.

Say goodbye to that bonus hour you picked up back in the fall--overnight tonight we've got to set our clocks ahead an hour for Daylight Savings Time. You can also use this as an opportunity to do a six-month check-up around your place to be sure your smoke alarms are properly powered, and that you've got fresh water for the household (and your pets) in case of an emergency.

The Department of Water and Power knows there are plenty of people using sprinklers while it's raining. "Under the city's Water Conservation Ordinance, it is illegal to water outdoors when it's raining," they said in an e-mail out to press. "Violators are subject to citation and fines under the municipal code." This is especially important this year due to drought conditions and a 50% less snow pack than usual. If you want to tattle on a water waster, call 1-800-DIAL DWP (1-800-342-5397) 24 hours a day or send an e-mail to the water conservation team at waterconservationteam@ladwp.com.

Residents, businesses and government have all lowered their water use over the past year, but the industrial sector has increased use by 22%, says the Mayor's Office today. Here's out the reduction breaks down citywide in Los Angeles:

Today, our computer is not about to explode like it was for the past two days in the sweltering heat. "The National Weather Service forecast highs for Thursday of between 69 and 79 near the Los Angeles County coast, 86 to 94 inland, 84 to 94 in the San Fernando Valley, 87 to 92 in the San Gabriel Valley, 88 and 93 in the Santa Clarita Valley and 82 and 91 in the Antelope Valley," reported the Long Beach Press-Telegram.

As temperatures reached high temperatures today, the LA Department of Water & Power announced spiked energy usage by residents this afternoon and is urging energy conservation. "Any time energy demand exceeds 5000 megawatts we need to begin conserving wherever possible, while not jeopardizing anyone's health or safety," said David Nahai, LADWP General Manager and Chief Executive Officer, in a e-mail notice. The DWP expects demand to reach up to 5500 megawatts. Has anyone run over to Nahai's house to see if he's conserving energy?

In the name of water conservation, the high desert city of Palmdale is expected to pass a new ordinance banning traditional grass front lawns on any new residential projects, according to the Daily News.

The forecast for California for the coming months is drought--no surprises here. In fact, it's going to be the "the fourth driest year in the last 114 years," according to KNBC.com, and we're expected to have "below-average rainfall for the third year in a row." So the Department of Water Resources is trying to get resourceful by setting up a program for growers and cities in the Southern part of the state to purchase water from farmers and water agencies located to the North, mostly in the Sacramento Valley area.