Rich Must Change Water Habits Under California Rules

The burden of adjusting water-use behavior will fall more heavily on the rich under California's new rules, since wealthy regions have not been as successful in conserving water up to this point.

"The mandatory restrictions are the first in the state’s history, but they look set to deepen long-standing divisions between the wealthy and the less well-off, and between California’s packed cities and its vast, sparsely populated agricultural areas," the Independent reported.

"The governor is looking to cut urban water use by 25 percent by the end of next February. There are 411 urban water districts in California and the 25 percent reduction will be drawn from all of them combined," KPCC reported.

When he unveiled the plan, Governor Jerry Brown encouraged residents to begin acting differently when it comes to water consumption. "What he did not say, however, was that some will have to act more differently than others," the report said.

Here's how the new plan will work: "Those with higher per-capita water use and few or no conservation programs will be put into buckets with a higher reduction goal. Those with lower per-capita use and robust conservation initiatives will be put into buckets with lower goals," KPCC reported.

Wealthier areas of California tend to consume more water. "Residents in communities such as La Canada Flintridge, Newport Beach, Malibu and Palos Verdes all used more than 150 gallons of water per capita per day in January. By contrast, Santa Ana used just 38 gallons and communities in Southeast L.A. County used less than 45," the Los Angeles Times reported.

The amount a community needs to cut under the new rules depends on how much they have already managed to conserve. "Some of California’s biggest water users...would have to cut their water consumption by 35 percent under the terms of a preliminary plan issued by state officials [in April] to meet a...mandatory statewide reduction in urban water use," the New York Times reported.

"While 135 communities face the stark 35 percent order, another 18 communities, including San Francisco, face reductions of just 10 percent, reflecting the progress they have made in cutting water consumption on their own. The remainder of the 400 California water agencies...would have to make cuts of 20 to 25 percent. Los Angeles would have to reduce its water use by 20 percent," the report continued.

Stephanie Pincetl, director of the California Centre for Sustainable Communities, gave her take on the problem. “The problem lies, in part, in the social isolation of the rich, the moral isolation of the rich,” she told the Los Angeles Times. The rich are “lacking a sense that we are all in this together."

The lawns in wealthy areas do not look the same as the lawns in less-affluent neighborhoods. "There are few signs of California’s epic drought along a stretch of Maple Drive in Beverly Hills. Deep green front lawns stretch out, dotted with healthy trees and sculpted foliage. The only brown lawn in sight was at a home under construction," the report said.