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As California drought worsens, Santa Barbara secures water supplies
Despite the worsening drought in California, Santa Barbara should not expect any water shortages for the next couple of years, city officials said this week, citing conservation and planning efforts.
The city has been conservative with its water supply planning strategy. That means, even though hydrological conditions have been “unfavorable,” the planning had prepared for even worse, Joshua Haggmark, the city’s water resources manager, told the Santa Barbara City Council Tuesday.
“Because of our planning, because of the conservation of the community, we’re not anticipating any shortages through 2024 — that’s assuming we make no changes, and that’s assuming we continue to utilize the supplies that we have,” Mr. Haggmark said.
Santa Barbara is using approximately 25% less water than it was using in 2013 — something that’s been consistent across the board over the past few years, according to Mr. Haggmark.
That 25% has resulted in about 3,400 acre-feet saved each year in Santa Barbara compared to 2013, according to a council agenda report.
Mr. Haggmark said the Gibraltar Reservoir is at 59% capacity, and the Cachuma Reservoir is at 46% capacity. The latter reservoir has about 23,400 acre-feet stored with the city, and about 17,600 acre-feet of that is carryover.
Echoing Mr. Haggmark’s remarks, Councilmember Kristen Sneddon said, “Climate change is here, the evidence is here and we’ve made — and have been making for decades — the investments that we needed to secure our water supply.”
“Also not to be understated: the community’s incredible efforts at extraordinary conservation,” she continued. “Thank you to the community for doing their part.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom extended the drought emergency statewide in October and has called on Californians to voluntarily reduce water use by 15% compared to 2020.
And earlier this week, Gov. Newsom signed an executive order instructing the State Water Resources Control Board to adopt further restrictions, such as a ban on non-functional turf irrigation, meant to conserve water.
Officials during the Santa Barbara City Council meeting Tuesday said they were monitoring the state’s actions as the drought continues. There’s a fear of potential unintended consequences a “one-size-fits-all” approach could bring — in terms of costs to the system, water usage and more — for the city, Councilmember Eric Friedman said.
“We’re the example of a city that’s doing everything right, and hopefully we can communicate that and get that across,” said Councilmember Sneddon.
“While we have made historic investments to protect our communities, economy and ecosystems from the worsening drought across the West, it is clear we need to do more,” Gov. Newsom said earlier this week. “Amid climate-driven extremes in weather, we must all continue to do our part and make water conservation a way of life.”
The city council unanimously approved a $2 million expenditure appropriation in the Water Operating Fund for fiscal year 2022 for supplemental water purchases through the Central Coast Water Authority Tuesday.
Mr. Haggmark said the goal is to purchase 2,000 acre-feet of water that will be stored in the San Luis Reservoir, where the water doesn’t evaporate. If that water is not needed or used by the city, it could be used to alleviate the water debt Santa Barbara owes to the state from a time when water could only be borrowed.
Mr. Haggmark said he expects the water to cost more than $1,400 per acre-foot. He suggested the city may want to hire its own broker to look into where water can be purchased and at what amount.
The U.S. Drought Monitor labeled Santa Barbara County in the “severe drought” category as of its latest update on March 22. Most of the state is under the severe drought category, but many other areas are one level higher, “extreme drought.”
Mr. Haggmark said he expected most of the state to fall under the extreme drought or “exceptional drought,” the highest level, before the end of the year.
The governor also announced a $22.5 million spending plan earlier this month — with an increase in funding for the Department of Water Resources, the State Water Resources Control Board and the California Department of Food and Agriculture — to bolster California’s response to the drought. More than $8 million was earmarked for water conservation outreach efforts.
email: kschallhorn@newspress.com
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