Water Shortage Emergency Declared In Santa Clara County

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — The Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors declared a water shortage emergency in the county during a special meeting Wednesday, proposing water use restrictions and calling on the county’s Board of Supervisors to proclaim a local emergency — an initial step toward attempting to mitigate worsening drought conditions that could jeopardize local water supply.

The water district that serves Santa Clara County’s 2 million residents doesn’t have the authority to directly impose mandates on cities and water companies, but plans to work with jurisdictions and private companies to accomplish a 15 percent reduction in water use from 2019 — or 33 percent of 2013 water use — along with proposed restrictions that include caps on using potable water for outdoor landscaping and irrigation and washing cars and structures.

See more of the list of proposed restrictions here.

“The board seeks to conserve the limited water supply of Valley Water for the greatest public benefit with particular regard to public health, fire protection and domestic use without threatening local land subsidence by ensuring the conservation of water … by reducing water usage in the county in a manner that is fair and equitable,” said board Chair Tony Estremera.

The board's seven members voted unanimously to approve the resolution.

Without additional restrictions on water usage, the county’s water storage levels are expected to drop significantly by as much as 80,000 acre-feet by the end of the year, according to water district officials. Officials blamed the decrease in supply, worsening drought conditions and the loss of the Anderson Reservoir — the largest reservoir in the district — for the next decade due to earthquake repairs.

The district’s second largest reservoir, the Coyote Reservoir near San Martin, has limited storage due to the state’s limits. And snowpack levels in the northern Sierra Nevada Mountains are zero percent of normal.

“When you see a storm about to hit your community, the responsibility of government is not to wait until the storm hits to call for emergency action,” said Rick Callender, CEO of Valley Water. “The responsibility of government, as we all know, is to act before the storm can actually cause devastation.”

District officials warn that groundwater levels could plummet to an “emergency” stage by next year, which could lead to wells running dry in South County and land subsidence resuming in North County. Groundwater accounts for about 40 percent of water use in Santa Clara County, and is the only drinking water source in South County.

With a 15 percent reduction in water usage, district officials project a best case scenario of water levels remaining at normal capacity next year, or at worst in a “severe” stage.

The last time Santa Clara County residents saw mandatory water use reductions was from 2012 to 2016, during a historic, multiyear drought. Other instances of restrictions occurred in 1977, 1987 to 1992 and 2007 to 2010.

Two weeks ago, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced that they would be reducing water shipments to urban areas by more than half, a decision that increased the concern amongst local water officials. In anticipation of worsening drought conditions, the district had approved a 9.1 percent rate increase for the 2022 fiscal year last month.

Valley Water Chief Operating Officer Aaron Baker said that the water district is pursuing additional imported water through multiple avenues, but none of them are certain and all of them carry a risk.

“There simply isn’t very much water in this dry year,” Baker said.

Water district officials said that they are calling on a majority of reductions in water usage to occur in outdoor activities, and that work should be done to provide a per person benchmark and other guidance to ensure the messaging over conservation is clear and effective.

“This is the start of what’s going to be a lengthy process, but it’s an important start,” said Director Barbara Keegan.