Friday April 22, 2022
Associated Press —
Mired in an extreme drought, California lawmakers on Thursday took the first step toward lowering the standard for how much water people use in their homes — a move that won’t be enforced on individual customers but could lead to higher rates even as consumption declines.
California’s current standard for residential indoor water use is 55 gallons (208 liters) per person per day. The rule doesn’t apply to customers, meaning regulators don’t write tickets to people for using more water than they are allowed. Instead, the state requires water agencies to meet that standard across all of its customers.
Last year, a study by state regulators found the median indoor residential water use in California was 48 gallons (181 liters) per person per day, or well below the current standard. They recommended state lawmakers lower the standard to encourage more conservation as droughts become more frequent and more severe because of climate change.