Gov. Jerry Brown has declared a drought emergency for California and has called for a 20% reduction in personal water use statewide.

South Feather Water and Power Agency’s total consumptive demand in 2013 was only 33% of the anticipated yield for the 2013-14 drought-declared water year.  Therefore, SFWPA is not anticipating having to impose drought contingencies, restrictions or rationing requirements on its customers.  The Agency’s water storage and supply sources will continue to more than adequately meet the current and foreseeable future demand.

Storage information (in acre-feet) for SFWPA’s storage facilities is posted at http://cdec.water.ca.gov.  The Station ID for Little Grass Valley Reservoir is “LGV”, and the ID for Sly Creek Reservoir is “SLC.”  Agency personnel send its storage report every Monday, and the data is usually posted to this website by DWR about one to two weeks after it is sent.

Notwithstanding South Feather’s ample storage and supply, water conserved by Agency customers becomes available for environmental and consumptive uses in areas of the state south of SFWPA’s service area.  Therefore, South Feather Water and Power Agency strongly supports the drought declaration and the statewide voluntary reduction in water use.

In the recent past, SFWPA has expended significant financial and personnel resources to implement many water conservation measures including updating, repairing and replacing water conveyance facilities,  modernizing water treatment plants, and water measurement improvements.    You can also play a role in conserving water and save yourself money in the process by becoming conscious of the amounts of water your household is using, and by looking for ways to use less whenever you can.  It is not hard to conserve water.  Here are a few tips:

• Automatic dishwashers use 15 gallons for every cycle, regardless of how many dishes are loaded.  So get a run for your money and load it to capacity.
• Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth.
• Check every faucet in your home for leaks.  Just a slow drip can waste 15 to 20 gallons each day.  Fix it and you can save almost 6,000 gallons per year.
• Check your toilets for leaks by putting a few drops of food coloring in the tank.  Watch for a few minutes to see if the color shows up in the bowl.  It is not uncommon to lose up to 100 gallons per day from an invisible toilet leak.  Fix it and you save more than 30,000 gallons per year.
• Use your water meter to detect hidden leaks.  Simply turn off all taps and water-using appliances.  Then check the meter after 15 minutes.  If it moved, you have a leak and may need to call a plumber.