11/22/2023 0 Comments Santa margarita water district cafrDistrict officials say that while backyard pools can save water over time, they’re net water users in the first year or two. The Santa Margarita Water District calculates that a new 500 square-foot pool with a 500 square-foot deck uses 34,275 gallons in the first year, including 18,700 gallons to fill the pool.īy comparison, a 1,000-square-foot lawn consumes 22,000 gallons a year. It takes at least 15,000 gallons to fill the average pool, and even when covered, pools need to be topped off periodically to replace evaporated water. The argument against pools is simple: They require lots of water. “It’s incumbent upon every Californian to do everything we can to save every drop of water.” Every drop counts,” said Brunhart, South Coast’s general manager. “We are in an exceptional drought in California. Up north, the Santa Cruz city council will consider next Tuesday whether to re-impose mandatory water rationing, including a prohibition on filling pools and hot tubs. The city of Newport Beach adopted conservation measures in September that imposed a ban on filling pools and spas there by more than one foot per week.That district lifted its ban in September by amending a water conservation ordinance after pool industry officials objected that pools use less water than lawns. The Santa Margarita Water District, serving 165,000 customers in Rancho Santa Margarita, Coto de Caza, Ladera Ranch and parts of Mission Viejo and San Clemente, imposed new restrictions on filling pools and spas in August when it raised its water conservation level to “Stage 2.”.Violators can face fines of up to $500, said district General Manager Andrew Brunhart. The South Coast Water District, which serves 40,000 residents in Dana Point, South Laguna Beach and parts of San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano, voted Tuesday to ban the filling or refilling of residential pools or spas.Bans on filling or refilling pools are cropping up in a handful of cities and water utilities throughout the state, including Orange County: With the state imposing conservation measures, some have called pool use into question. Local water agency officials say that’s true - but only after a couple of years. When covered to curtail evaporation, a pool’s water use is as miserly as drought-tolerant landscaping, it insists. The pool industry says pools save water compared to lawns and conventional landscaping. “It’s skyrocketing,” Mike Brunning, president of Orange County Pools, said of his business this year. In 2014 alone, Orange County homeowners installed 829 new pools, with installations this year on track for just under 900 new pools, which would be the second-busiest year since the economic downturn. Orange County homeowners have installed nearly 4,500 new swimming pools since 2010, figures from Utah-based research firm Construction Monitor show. “I’ll know exactly how much water it’s using (and) I can control it on my phone.”Įven as the state and water agencies work to cut water use in Orange County as much as 35 percent, and several cities have put in place restrictions on filling pools and spas, construction in Orange County is booming. His landscaping includes artificial turf, cement decking, native drought-tolerant plants and computer-controlled systems to adjust watering by season and rainfall and to monitor pool water levels. In fact, the Lake Forest homeowner maintains his pool is actually saving water. The drought isn’t stopping Dave Mickey from putting a new pool in his backyard.
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