Environment: Water conservation must become a way of daily life

Use sprinklers between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Photo by Marty Cheek
Bob and Nancy Wells in the front yard of their home. They took advantage of Valley Water’s program to remove their lawn and plant drought-tolerant landscaping.

By Staff Reports

The multi-year drought may be over after last winter’s deluge of precipitation, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t still conserve water. That was the Valley Water Board of Directors’ message after the agency adopted a resolution declaring water conservation must be a way of life.

The board also unanimously passed an ordinance with permanent water waste prohibitions to ensure water is not misused, even during non-drought periods.

As part of the ordinance, the following water-wasting actions are now permanently prohibited:

• Using sprinklers between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.
• Causing runoff while watering any outdoor landscape.
• Watering outdoors within 48 hours of measurable rainfall.
• Using leaking plumbing fixtures, sprinklers, or irrigation systems without repairing them after written notification from a retailer or Valley Water.
• Watering non-functional turf at commercial, industrial, and institutional properties, including common areas of homeowner’s associations and multi-family residential properties.
• Washing cars, except by handwashing, by a hose with an automatic shut-off nozzle, or at a facility.
• Washing building exteriors or mobile homes with a hose without an automatic shut-off nozzle.
• Washing sidewalks, walkways, driveways, patios, parking lots, or other hard-surfaced, non-porous ground areas except in cases where health and safety are at risk.

Valley Water’s inspectors respond to reports of waste and violations. Reports in Santa Clara County can be reported through www.valleywater.org, emailing [email protected], or by calling (408) 630-2000.