Being Waterwise

Waterwise Garden

Being WaterWise

Every Day is a Chance to Save

Responding to the hard-earned lessons learned from enduring several droughts over the past 30 years, Southern Californians have changed how they view and use water. The result is impressive: Southland residents use less water today than they did in 1990, even though our population has increased by more than 4 million people. We’ve achieved this together as a region by supporting smarter plumbing and building codes, increasing awareness of the importance of our natural resources, funding water efficiency rebate programs, and enlisting students to bring conservation home through Metropolitan’s education programs. With years of record drought followed by intense rainfall, we recognize that climate change is making California’s swings from wet to dry even more extreme, and we must be ready. That’s why it’s important to be prepared by saving water today to store for the dry years ahead.

Conservation is not only a way of life here, it’s a vital water supply source. Without conservation, the effects of drought would be more swift and more severe. When we use less water in our daily lives, we reduce water demands across the region and achieve greater supply reliability for us all.

 

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A yard with shrubs and groundcover native to California instead of a grass lawn

Rebates to Help
You Save

Metropolitan has invested over $910 million in conservation rebates to incentivize purchases of water-efficient devices like toilets, flow monitor devices, smart irrigation controllers and high-efficiency clothes washers. Our targeted turf rebate program — the largest in the nation — has supported the transformation of millions of acres of water-guzzling grass into beautiful California Friendly© and native plant landscapes. Metropolitan continues to lead the way by calling for the elimination of non-functional turf for commercial, industrial, public properties. This is a valuable tool to quickly and permanently decrease overall water use to enhance our water reliability.

 

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Achievements in Conservation, Recycling and Groundwater Recharge

An increasing percentage of Southern California’s water supply comes from conservation, water recycling, and recovered groundwater. Metropolitan’s annual achievement report describes its successes in the areas of local resource development, local storage efforts, and improvement of the watersheds that provide imported and local supplies to the region.

Read our full report to the state Legislature.
View the executive summary.
View our scorecard.

 

Someone checking a moisture sensor on a grape vine

Innovative Conservation Program 

Metropolitan is always looking for great ideas and ways to be even more efficient. This research-focused grant program, in collaboration with the Southern California Gas Company, allows Metropolitan to form partnerships with public and private entities to evaluate the potential and reliability of innovative water-saving devices, technologies and strategies.

Community Partnering Program

This program provides sponsorships for community-based organizations to organize water conservation and water-use efficiency programs and activities throughout the Metropolitan Water District service area. Funding supports community forums, workshops, water festivals, after-school programs, and demonstration gardens.

An upgraded water flow control reading 328 gallons per minute

Water Savings Incentive Program

Non-residential customers who are interested in improving their water savings with upgraded equipment or services that do not qualify for other rebates can apply to this program that supports water-use efficiency.

Watering Index

One of the most effective ways to conserve water is to irrigate efficiently. With this watering calculator you will be able to estimate the correct amount of water to give your landscape or garden on a weekly basis.

Advertising & Outreach

Metropolitan’s in-house design resources allow us to rapidly adapt and revise messaging and programs to address evolving water supply conditions and consumer interests. We are mindful to produce culturally relevant communications materials in multiple languages that speak to our diverse service area across various platforms. Metropolitan has developed a suite of advertising and outreach campaigns to increase awareness about the need to conserve amid climate extremes. The campaigns provide Southern California residents with practical water-saving tips and information on water-efficient device rebates.

Metropolitan relies on a network to broadcast the importance of conservation as the region continues to face increasingly severe impacts of climate change.

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Education Programs

For over 35 years, our Education Unit has inspired students, educators and community members with a lifelong appreciation for natural resources and our shared responsibility to be mindful of our impact on the environment. All Metropolitan education resources are available at no cost to teachers and students within our six-county service area.

 

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add_circle A teacher guiding a lesson about water for teenagers
add_circle An elementary school class observes an experiment conducted by a teacher and a child
add_circle A teature educates an elementary school class on the water cycle an how it applies to California's geography
add_circle A teacher talks about water in the classroom
add_circle Daisy Girl Scouts showing eachother the patches on their vests
add_circle Two Metropolitan staff educate a class on their field trip to a Metropolitan facility
add_circle Two children guided by a teacher doing an arts and crafts project to learn more about water