Just as news broke Saturday that the National Drought Mitigation
Center had declared a drought in San Benito County, the clouds
broke loose with some rain.
Just as news broke Saturday that the National Drought Mitigation Center had declared a drought in San Benito County, the clouds broke loose with some rain.
It was a fine spring shower – a good excuse not to mow the lawn – but hardly enough to make up for the past months of unusually dry weather that have left our area with less than half the rainfall total it would normally have received.
So the first drought in 15 years continues. Farmers and ranchers here know firsthand that the situation is ugly. Crops aren’t getting the natural irrigation farmers count on and pasture grass has been stunted by the lack of rain. Fruit growers, who depend on water piped in from the San Luis Reservoir, are facing limits on how much water they can draw.
Local hay grower Greg Renz told the Free Lance on Friday that the dry winter had cost him about 80 percent of his hay crop. “There have been years that were collectively pretty bad in the ’70s and ’90s, but this is the worst single year I can remember,” Renz said. “It’s a train wreck.”
As dry as it has been, most folks who live in urbanized areas here haven’t noticed any problems. San Juan Bautista City Manager Jan McClintock and Hollister City Manager Clint Quilter both said municipal water supplies are fine and that they don’t anticipate any water-use restrictions that will affect the average homeowner.
However, Santa Cruz has announced it will begin mandatory residential water use restrictions. Starting May 1, residents will be prohibited from watering their lawns during daylight hours. And more than 2 million Bay Area residents, from San Francisco down to the northern edge of San Jose, have been told by utility officials to voluntarily cut at-home water use by 10 percent by June or face mandatory restrictions.
Even if there’s no immediate threat of local restrictions, it’s still a good idea to be careful with at-home water use so we don’t wake up one of these sun-soaked mornings and find ourselves in the same situation as our neighbors in Santa Cruz, San Francisco and San Jose.
The Water Resources Association of San Benito County suggests following these simple steps:
-Install water-efficient toilets, shower heads and faucets.
-Run washing machines and dishwashers only when full.
-Repair any leaks or drips promptly.
-Change lawn and garden irrigation timers with the seasons.
-Limit water needs by limiting turf areas.
Mark Twain famously said, “Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.” Given the recent drought declaration, maybe this would be a good time to take some action.
