Environment
Is California water use increasing?
Produced by Aaron Mendelson & Chris Keller | Updated Sept. 7, 2016
Sources: California Water Resources Control Board. Built using: django-bakery, underscore.js, backbone.js, leaflet.js, chartist.js & Bootstrap. Circles on a line distribution charts based on CensusReporter charts, design and code created by Ryan Pitts, Joe Germuska, Ian Dees and Sara Schnadt. Icon credits: Waste icon created by Luis Prado and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Washing Machine icon created by Megan Sheehan and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Bucket icon created by Nithin Viswanathan and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Water drop icon created by Diego Naive and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Broom icon created by Anna Weiss and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Clock icon created by Pavel Nikandrov and used via a Public Domain Mark from The Noun Project. Sprinkler icon created by Micah West and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Cactus icon created by Edward Boatman and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution from The Noun Project. Shower icon used via a Public Domain Mark from The Noun Project.
August monthly water use by the West Valley Water District
- Water consumption in the West Valley Water District decreased 5.88 percent in August 2017 compared to August 2016. Overall, consumption in August has decreased 21.23 percent over the past five years.
- August 2013 447 million gallons
- August 2014 295 million gallons
- August 2015 374 million gallons
- August 2016 352 million gallons
- August 2017 295 million gallons
Displayed in millions of gallons
Average daily water consumption by each residential customer
- About 66.0% of water consumption in the West Valley Water District is residential. The average daily gallons used by each residential customer decreased 19.61 percent in August 2017 compared to August 2016, according to the State Water Resources Control Board.
- 91.40
- average daily gallons
used by each residential
customer for August 2017
- 113.70
- average daily gallons
used by each residential
customer for August 2017
Year-over-year water consumption
- 2013 327 million gallons
- 2015 365 million gallons
- 2016 276 million gallons
- 2013 373 million gallons
- 2015 348 million gallons
- 2016 296 million gallons
- 2013 476 million gallons
- 2015 450 million gallons
- 2016 365 million gallons
- 2013 539 million gallons
- 2015 519 million gallons
- 2016 362 million gallons
- 2013 646 million gallons
- 2015 472 million gallons
- 2016 439 million gallons
- 2013 700 million gallons
- 2015 558 million gallons
- 2016 524 million gallons
- 2013 717 million gallons
- 2015 527 million gallons
- 2016 609 million gallons
- 2013 713 million gallons
- 2015 585 million gallons
- 2016 613 million gallons
- 2013 670 million gallons
- 2015 496 million gallons
- 2016 500 million gallons
- 2013 581 million gallons
- 2015 437 million gallons
- 2016 419 million gallons
- 2013 502 million gallons
- 2015 399 million gallons
- 2016 365 million gallons
- 2013 447 million gallons
- 2015 374 million gallons
- 2016 352 million gallons
Displayed in millions of gallons
2014 water use data is incomplete and therefore not displayed
Progress toward mandatory water reduction*
- West Valley Water District water use decreased by 22.81 percent between June 2015 and February 2016 — the nine months of the initial statewide conservation mandate — but the agency failed to meet a 32 percent reduction.
- 93.677
- billion gallons consumed
- over the same months in 2013.
- 72.307
- billion gallons consumed
- between June 2015 and February 2016.
*: Approved by the State Water Resources Control Board in 2015, the reduction target was meant to achieve a 25 percent reduction in water use statewide. It is tied to an average July through Sept. 2014 daily per capita residential water use rate that placed water agencies into nine tiers.
Enforcement statistics
- Selected enforcement statistics reported by the West Valley Water District to the State Water Resources Control Board.
| Month | Watering Days | Complaints | Follow-up Actions | Warnings Issued | Penalties Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MonthAugust 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJuly 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions11 | Warnings Issued11 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthOctober 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions4 | Warnings Issued4 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthSeptember 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions9 | Warnings Issued9 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received2 | Follow-up Actions2 | Warnings Issued2 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJuly 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received2 | Follow-up Actions1 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJune 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions1 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthMay 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received4 | Follow-up Actions3 | Warnings Issued3 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthApril 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions1 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthMarch 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions1 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthFebruary 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions1 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJanuary 2017 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received3 | Follow-up Actions3 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2016 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthNovember 2016 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions11 | Warnings Issued11 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthOctober 2016 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions4 | Warnings Issued4 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthSeptember 2016 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions9 | Warnings Issued9 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions1 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJuly 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions29 | Warnings Issued29 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJune 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions5 | Warnings Issued5 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthMay 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received3 | Follow-up Actions33 | Warnings Issued33 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthApril 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions11 | Warnings Issued11 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthMarch 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received4 | Follow-up Actions15 | Warnings Issued15 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthFebruary 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received6 | Follow-up Actions16 | Warnings Issued16 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJanuary 2016 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received2 | Follow-up Actions22 | Warnings Issued18 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2015 | Watering Days2 | Complaints Received1 | Follow-up Actions97 | Warnings Issued97 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthNovember 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received3 | Follow-up Actions137 | Warnings Issued135 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthOctober 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received15 | Follow-up Actions2052 | Warnings Issued343 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthSeptember 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received3 | Follow-up Actions286 | Warnings Issued284 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received10 | Follow-up Actions144 | Warnings Issued132 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJuly 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received79 | Follow-up Actions79 | Warnings Issued66 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJune 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received79 | Follow-up Actions79 | Warnings Issued72 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthMay 2015 | Watering Days3 | Complaints Received10 | Follow-up Actions10 | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthApril 2015 | Watering Days7 | Complaints Received7 | Follow-up Actions7 | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthMarch 2015 | Watering Days7 | Complaints Received7 | Follow-up Actions7 | Warnings Issued1 | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthFebruary 2015 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJanuary 2015 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthNovember 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthOctober 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthSeptember 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthAugust 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJuly 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
| MonthJune 2014 | Watering Days— | Complaints Received— | Follow-up Actions— | Warnings Issued— | Penalties Assessed— |
Here are some ways you can help conserve water
Wash only full loads
Take shorter showers
Use a broom to clean the driveway or sidewalk
Plant California Friendly plants
About the data: This data is for urban water suppliers and is based on the the most recent reports submitted to the State Water Resources Control Board. Since the gallons of water used per person per day measurement does not take into account rainfall, temperature, humidity and population density, the State Water Resources Control Board discourages comparisons between water suppliers.