Drought Imperils Marin Housing Construction: Reports

MARIN COUNTY, CA — Dual crises are bearing down on Marin, and one could soon exacerbate the other.

The North Bay county’s largest water district is considering a restrictive measure amid a historic drought that imperils development amid a historic housing crunch, according to multiple published reports.

The Marin Municipal Water District is reportedly mulling a ban on new water service hookups that figures to stymie housing construction.

The district last month enacted tough restrictions that aim to reduce water use by 40 percent — and that was before the district learned a key supplier was cutting exports this summer.

The district gets around 25 percent of its water from Sonoma Water, which is cutting exports by 20 percent over a three-month period starting July 1, The Marin Independent Journal reports.

The MMWD serves central and southern Marin and provides water to around 190,000 residents.
The proposed water hookup ban will go before the board at its June 1 meeting, The IJ reports.

A long-term ban would hinder Marin’s ability to hit ambitious California housing goals, The Chronicle reports, noting the state expects cities and counties to plan for the development of 17,600 units over the next eight years.

All indications are that the district is moving toward implementing the proposed ban.

MMWD Director Larry Bragman acknowledged at the district’s most recent meeting on May 18 that such a measure would “have real-world effects.”

“It’s going to inconvenience people,” Bragman said. “It’s going to ripple out into our economy. I know none of us are taking it less than very seriously, but it’s a serious decision.”

The district declared a drought in mid-February and launched a public awareness campaign asking customers to conserve water by voluntarily cutting back on irrigation, not washing vehicles, and conserving water indoors.

The district last month enacted bans on washing vehicles at home, power washing homes and businesses, among others.

A restriction limiting golf courses to watering tees and greens went into effect Thursday.

Persistent warm, dry weather lowered Marin Water's reservoir storage capacity to 52 percent —the lowest level in nearly 40 years.

Storage levels for this time of year are typically more than 90 percent.

Much of the West Coast, including nearly all of California, is experiencing drought conditions.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, as of May 18, 94.3 percent of California is in a severe drought, 73.3 percent of the state is in an extreme drought and 15.9 percent is experiencing "exceptional drought" conditions.

Read more in The San Francisco Chronicle and The Marin Independent Journal.