Mesa Water to hold hearing on conservation options

The Mesa Water District will hold a public hearing Thursday to discuss a range of drought-prompted water-saving measures for Costa Mesa, including limits on outdoor watering and speedy fixing of leaks.

In response to state mandates that Mesa Water cut its water usage by 20% in the coming months, district officials have created three tiers of conservation programs, the strictest of which would ban the filling of residential swimming pools and the washing of cars except at designated commercial facilities.

However, waterless swimming pools and other painful cutbacks may not be on the table just yet, said district spokeswoman Noelle Collins.

“The board could adopt restrictions at a higher level, but it doesn’t look like it’s necessary at this point,” she said.

District officials are recommending that the board adopt the lowest tier and limit outdoor watering to Tuesdays and Saturdays before 8 a.m. and after 5 p.m.

The rules would apply to all district ratepayers — including public agencies like the city of Costa Mesa, Newport-Mesa Unified School District and Mesa Water itself, said Justin Finch, the district’s resource efficiency specialist. Recycled water users will not be affected.

Ratepayers who don’t comply with the new restrictions could be fined up to $200, with the possibility of discontinued service.

He added that Mesa Water will be actively looking for violators, who would receive two warning notices before facing fines.

For households, warnings are generally written on door hangers; for businesses, they may come in the mail or with a phone call, Finch said.

Under the lowest conservation program tier, leaks would need to be fixed within 72 hours of a warning. The next two higher tiers would require repairs in 24 to 48 hours.

Finch noted that most violations are fixed quickly.

“People don’t want to waste water,” he said. “They just want to know the rules. Our goal isn’t to issue fines. It’s to educate and correct the issues.”

About 30% of Mesa Water’s supply comes from the Mesa Water Reliability Facility, on Gisler Avenue, which pumps from a deep, underground aquifer unaffected by the drought conditions. The remaining 70% comes from the county’s water basin.

The district does not import water from Northern California or the Colorado River.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. Mesa Water headquarters is at 1965 Placentia Ave., Costa Mesa.