Rulemaking to Make Conservation a California Way of Life
Making Conservation a California Way of Life is a new way of managing urban water use. The State Water Board will consider a regulation that establishes unique efficiency goals for each Urban Retail Water Supplier in California and provides those suppliers flexibility to implement locally appropriate solutions. As part of the state’s all-of-the-above strategy to expand storage, develop new water supplies, and promote more efficient water use, this regulation seeks to cultivate long-term practices that help communities adapt to California's ongoing water challenges. The proposed regulation will lessen the need for the emergency water use reduction targets that were important in recent droughts.
As part of the proposed regulation, urban retail water suppliers – not individual households or businesses – will be held to “urban water use objectives.” An urban water use objective is the sum of standard-based budgets for a subset of water uses, such as residential outdoor use.
Click here to read more about how urban retail water suppliers would calculate customized urban water use objectives.
Public Meetings
Learn more about upcoming and past meetings
Objective Exploration Tool
Learn how the regulation may affect urban water use
Regulatory Documents
Find files associated with the official rulemaking process
Fact Sheets
Find fact sheets, FAQs, and Primer
Supporting Materials
Studies and recommendations
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Public Meetings
Upcoming Meetings and Workshops
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- Agenda
- Agenda en Español
Materials for Workshop
Presentations
- Powerpoint Slides
- Webinar Recording
Past Meetings and Workshops
Materials for workshop:
Presentations:
Public Stakeholder Webinar: Urban Trees and Parklands
- Friday, August 12, 2022
- Agenda | Notice
- Agenda en Español | Aviso
Material for Workshop
The following materials are subject to changes based on stakeholder input, as the stakeholder process is ongoing.
- State Water Board’s Staff Preface to Task 5 – Urban Trees and Parklands
- Task 5 – Summary of Environmental Effects (Urban Trees and Parklands)
- Outdoor Residential Water Use Standard Draft Recommendation
Presentations
Public Stakeholder Webinar: Wastewater
- Wednesday, May 11th, 2022
- Agenda | Notice
- Agenda en Español | Aviso
Material for Workshop
The following materials are subject to changes based on stakeholder input, as the stakeholder process is ongoing.
- State Water Board’s Staff Preface to the Task 5 - Wastewater report
- Task 5 – Summary of Environmental Effects (Wastewater)
- Wastewater data informing Task 5 - Wastewater Report
- Nutrient Removal Analysis at California Wastewater Treatment Facilities
- Biochemical Oxygen Demand and Total Suspended Solids Summaries from California Wastewater Treatment Facilities
- Influent Parameter Concentrations, Mass Loading Values, and Influent Flow Values for Evaluating Operations During Dry Weather Flows at California Wastewater Treatment Facilities
- Results of the Indoor Residential Water Use Study
- Appendices for the Residential Water Use Study
Presentations
How forthcoming efficiency standards may impact local wastewater management PowerPoint Slides
Presentation
Regulatory Documents
- Notice of Proposed Regulatory Action (NOPA)
- Proposed Text of Regulation
- Initial Statement of Reason (ISOR)
- Standardized Regulatory Impact Assessments (SRIA)
- Standard Form 399 and Attachment
Fact Sheets, FAQs, and Primer
- Regulation Fact Sheet (08/18/2023)
- Hoja Informativa (08/18/2023)
- Legislation Fact Sheet (06/07/2018)
- Primer of 2018 Legislation on Water Conservation and Drought Planning
Supporting Materials
Studies
Research Contract
In June 2019, the State Water Board adopted Resolution Number 2019-0029, authorizing a contract to support the environmental and economic analysis of new water efficiency standards. The California Department of General Services approved Contract 19-058-240 on November 1, 2019. California State University (CSU) Sacramento led the work to generate water use scenarios given varying and reasonably foreseeable climatic and economic conditions. The scenarios informed both the environmental and economic impact analyses. Teams at the University of California (UC) Los Angeles, UC Davis, and CSU Sacramento carried out the environmental analyses, which include meeting CEQA obligations and evaluating impacts to local wastewater management, developed and natural parklands, and urban tree health. Teams at CSU Humboldt and CSU Sacramento carried out the economic impact analysis.
Deliverables
- Task 5 - Summary of Environmental Effects (Urban Trees and Parklands)
- Task 5 - Summary of Environmental Effects (Wastewater)
- Task 7 - Objective Exploration Tool
Indoor Water Use
Recommendations
The 2018 Legislation requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR), in coordination with the State Water Board, conduct necessary studies and investigations and develop recommendations for the State Water Board.
California Statutes Making Conservation a California Way of Life
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Contact Us
Conservation Unit
ORPP-WaterConservation@waterboards.ca.gov
