The Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency (SCV Water) received an “outstanding public response” to its request for customers to refrain from irrigating last week, officials said Monday.

The restriction was put in place to accommodate annual maintenance on infrastructure at Castaic Lake. The scheduled maintenance briefly made water from Castaic Lake unavailable for use.

“Our community did a great job with increased conservation efforts,” said Matt Stone, general manager of SCV Water. “Homeowners, businesses and large institutional water users were all very cooperative. Water demand was down by an average of 15 percent from the prior week.”

SCV Water requested that water users refrain from irrigation and other outdoor water use Feb. 18-22 as the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) replaced a 132” valve in its distribution system. This annual shutdown ensures time for routine maintenance and needed repairs as proactive measures to prolong the life of the infrastructure.

“With the public’s help, we were able to maintain a buffer of stored water, just in case a local emergency arose, or if the project took a little longer than expected,” said Gary Haggin, operations and maintenance superintendent for SCV Water.

During the shutdown, the Santa Clarita Valley relied exclusively upon local groundwater and treated imported water already stored at reservoirs throughout the valley.

“The maintenance is done, and customers can resume outdoor irrigation if needed,” said Keith Abercrombie, CEO for SCV Water. “However, we encourage a continuing conservation mindset, especially when it comes to outdoor water use.”

“The northern part of the state is abnormally dry for this time of year and rainfall is below average,” Abercrombie said. “Southern California is also experiencing below-average precipitation, and we are seeing the early stages of drought conditions despite a few winter storms.”

“During these spring months, most landscape can be irrigated just once or twice a week,” said Matt Dickens, resource conservation manager for SCV Water. “Now is a good time to check your irrigation timer settings to ensure optimal operation. Additionally, spring rain showers offer a great opportunity to shut off the sprinklers for a few days to let Mother Nature do the irrigating.”

Dickens added that SCV Water continues to urge customers to avoid the following water waste practices: allowing water to run off property onto sidewalks and gutters; washing down driveways and/or sidewalks; washing a vehicle using a hose without a shut-off nozzle; the use of non-recirculating fountains; and irrigating a landscape during and 48 hours after receiving measurable rain.

“We know customers sometimes wonder why they are still being asked to conserve water when we receive a few winter storms, but the efficient use of water in California is an ongoing priority given the large variability between wet and dry years in the west,” Abercrombie said. “So in the meantime, we simply want to thank all SCV Water customers for their cooperation and conservation, not only last week, but as a way of life in the Santa Clarita Valley.”

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