- No lawn, landscape, or turn areas shall be watered or irrigated between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.
- No lawn, landscape, or turf areas shall be watered or irrigated more than 2 days a week in the winter and summer.
- The City's watering days are:
- Summer (May-October): TUESDAYS and SATURDAYS
- Winter (November-April): TUESDAYS and SATURDAYS
- The City's watering days are:
- No hose washing of sidewalks, walkways, driveways, or parking areas.
- No washing of motor vehicles, except where the hose is fitted with a shut-off nozzle or similar device that ceases dispensing water when not in use.
- No water shall be used to clean, fill, or maintain levels in decorative fountains, unless such water is part of a recirculating system.
- No lawn, landscape, or turn areas shall be watered in a wasteful manner.
- No lawn, landscape, or turf areas shall be watered or irrigated during and within 48 hours after measurable rainfall.
- No Arcadia water customer shall permit water to leak from any facilities on their premises.
- No restaurant, cafe, cafeteria, bar, or other public places where food or beverage is served of offered for sale shall service drinking water to any customer unless expressly requested by the customer.
- No hotel or motel shall launder towels and linens of an occupied guestroom on a daily basis unless expressly requested by the guest.
The water supply of Earth is a required element for life to exist and thrive. The water cycle is a continuous cycle that keeps water moving on and around Earth in different forms. The different stages of the water cycle include evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and collection. Each stage of the cycle leads to the next stage, and each stage is an important part of a process that helps to water plants, fill cisterns, dry up puddles, and remove floodwaters. Glossary of Terms
Aquifer: An aquifer is an underground layer that contains groundwater.
Atmosphere: A unit of atmosphere measures the air pressure at sea level, which is about 14.7 pounds per square inch.
Climate: The climate of a location includes all of the weather conditions for this location over an extended period of time.
Cloud: A cloud is a visible mass of small water droplets or tiny ice crystals that are suspended in the atmosphere.
Cloud Condensation Nuclei: Water vapor surrounds tiny particles, condensing in clouds to become raindrops.
Condensation: Condensation is the process by which water vapor changes into liquid.
Current: Currents are predictable and steady flows of fluid in a larger body of fluid.
Density: Density describes the amount of things in a specific space.
Dew Point: Dew point is the temperature at which water in the air condenses to become water droplets near the ground.
Ecosystem: An ecosystem is a community of living and nonliving things in an area.
Erosion: Erosion happens when soil is worn away, usually by wind, water, or ice.
Evaporation: Evaporation is the process of water changing into water vapor.
Evapotranspiration: When moisture from the soil evaporates into the atmosphere or when transpiration from plants occurs, this is called evapotranspiration.
Fog: Clouds near the ground are known as fog.
Freshwater: A lake, river, or spring is a source of freshwater, which animals can drink.
Glacier: A glacier is a mass of ice that moves slowly across a land mass.
Great Lakes: The Great Lakes are the biggest freshwater bodies of water in the world, located in the United States.
Greenhouse Gas: Gases in the atmosphere that absorb solar heat reflected by Earth's surface, contributing to warming of the atmosphere, are greenhouse gases.
Groundwater: Groundwater is water found in an aquifer.
Humidity: The amount of water vapor in the air is the humidity.
Ice: Ice is water in solid form.
Ice Cap: An ice cap is an area of less than 19,000 square miles covered by ice.
Ice Sheet: Ice sheets are glacial ice areas that cover a large expanse.
Lake: A lake is a body of water that is surrounded by land.
Microscopic: Microscopic describes something very small.
Pollutant: A pollutant is a substance that harms a natural resource.
Precipitation: Precipitation includes all types of water that fall to Earth.
River: A river is a big stream of fresh water that flows.
Runoff: When fluid overflows from a farm or factory, it's known as runoff.
Snowmelt: Melted water from snow is snowmelt.
Temperature: The level of heat or cold, measured by a thermometer, is temperature.
Transpiration: Water that evaporates from plants is transpiration.
Vapor: Vapor is liquid that is suspended in air.
Water Cycle: Water moves between the land, bodies of water, and atmosphere in a process known as the water cycle.
Weather: Weather describes the state of the atmosphere, and it includes atmospheric pressure, temperature, humidity, cloudiness, precipitation, and wind.
Wind: Wind is air that moves from areas of high pressure to low-pressure zones.
- Ends the voluntary 15% water conservation target, while continuing to encourage that Californians make conservation a way of life;
- Ends the requirement that local water agencies implement level 2 of their drought contingency plans;
- Maintains the ban on wasteful water uses, such as watering ornamental grass on commercial properties;
- Preserves all current emergency orders focused on groundwater supply, where the effects of the multi-year drought continue to be devastating;
- Maintains orders focused on specific watersheds that have not benefited as much from recent rains;
- Retains a state of emergency for all 58 counties to allow for drought response and recovery efforts to continue.
With this in mind, the City of Arcadia will maintain the City's current Water Conservation efforts. Outdoor watering is allowed only two days per week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, both in the summer and winter, between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.
For more information, please contact the Public Works Services Department at (626) 254-2700 or by email at publicworks@arcadiaca.gov. Read executive Order N-5-23 in its entirety at the link below.
Press Release: Governor Newsom Eases Drought Restrictions | California Governor
Executive Order N-5-23
AUGUST 18, 2022--The presentation below is an update on the City's current water supply conditions and water conservation updates:
City of Arcadia Water Supply and Conservation Update
May 17, 2022--The City Council of the City of Arcadia adopted Resolution No. 7430 amending the Municipal Code regarding watering restrictions. The restrictions parallel the State Water Resources Board's adopted emergency drought regulations. Specifically, the City's Summer Watering Schedule has been amended from 3 days a week to 2 days only on Tuesday and Saturday. The Summer Watering Schedule is effective from May 1 through October 31. All other mandatory water waste prohibitions remain. Additionally, water customers in the Commercial, Institutional, and Industrial categories cannot water non-functional turf or may face a fine from the State. Non-functional turf is defined as solely ornamental turf that isn't regularly used for human recreation or civic activities. Trees and perennial plants are exempt from those restrictions and may be watered by hand-held hose or drip irrigation before 9:00 a.m. or after 6:00 p.m. Property owners interested in installing drought tolerant landscaping or artificial turf are encouraged to review the City's Residential Landscaping Guide. Metropolitan Water District offers a $2 per square foot turf removal rebate to both residential and commercial customers, accessible here.
April 26, 2022--Metropolitan Water District declared a Water Shortage Emergency Condition and adopted an Emergency Water Conservation Program for areas that are dependent on State Water Project (SWP) supplies. The Program requires agencies dependent on the SWP deliveries to immediately cut water use by implementing one-day-a-week watering restrictions, or the equivalent, by June 1, 2022. Although the City of Arcadia does not depend on SWP water and is not required at this time to reduce watering days to only one day a week, the Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District has forecasted that the Main San Gabriel Basin Water Table Key Well will reach a historic low in November 2022, if extractions continue to remain the same as the previous three years. They have stressed the need for continued water conservation by all agencies, no matter their source of water and are encouraging local water providers to implement a two day per week outdoor watering restriction. Therefore, the City of Arcadia will propose during the May 17, 2022 City Council Meeting to amend the summer watering schedule to a two day per week outdoor water restriction in place of the three day outdoor water restriction, with watering days to take place on Tuesdays and Saturdays. We all need to work together to help California’s water shortage. Every drop Counts!
October 19, 2021--Following the second driest year on record and with near record low storage in California’s largest reservoirs, Governor Newsom issued an emergency proclamation extending the drought emergency statewide and further urged Californians to step up their water conservation efforts. The proclamation directs local agencies to execute their urban Water Shortage Contingency Plan at the appropriate level, based on local conditions and to prepare for another dry year. Among the provisions, the proclamation also grants authority to the State Water Board to adopt emergency regulations banning wasteful forms of water use, such as prohibiting the use of potable water for washing sidewalks, driveways, buildings, structures, patios, parking lots, or other hard surfaces, except in cases where health and safety are at risk. We urge all water customers to ramp up conservation efforts by observing the City's outdoor water use prohibitions in the drop down menu below.
Proclamation of a State of Emergency
Office of the Governor Press Release
Drought.ca.gov
July 8, 2021--Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-10-21 calling for a voluntary 15% reduction from 2020 water use levels across the state and added 9 additional counties under drought emergency. The proclamation included 5 common sense ways to reduce water use; e.g. reducing the time and frequency of outdoor irrigation, fixing leaks in a timely manner, and other indoor water-efficient practices. As mentioned in the Executive Order and consistent with the City's Water Conservation Program outreach, outdoor irrigation consists of up to 50% of residential water use. The most efficient and impactful way to achieve any reduction target is through reducing sprinkler run time and frequency, as well as quickly repairing leaks. Please view resources below on how to save water indoors and outdoors, as well as rebates available to Arcadia water customers.
Executive Order N-10-21
Governor Newsom Calls on Californians to Take Simple Actions to Conserve Water
Drought.ca.gov
May 21, 2021--Governor Newsom has declared a drought emergency in 41 California counties. While Los Angeles County has not yet been declared under a drought emergency, the U.S. Drought Monitor already shows the county to be in extreme drought. The City continues to monitor the drought situation and would like to remind the community that the most impactful way to use water efficiently is by being mindful of outdoor irrigation.
Emergency Proclamation
Governor Newsom Expands Drought Emergency
US Drought Monitor
