Lawndale Tribune
AND lAwNDAle News
The Weekly Newspaper of Lawndale
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 79, No. 13 - March 26, 2020
Not All Heroes Wear Capes, Some Wear Aprons
8,506 breakfast and lunch meals were served last week to the community. We are so grateful for the wonderful school district staff who helped prepare and distribute meals. Photo Lawndale Elementary School District.
“We want kids to value real food and understanding that it isn’t just about
feeding people but about nourishing the body, the community and the planet.”
Scott Houston from front page
costs of construction will be passed along to
the ratepayers, which is another reason for some
opposition to adding desalination to the local
freshwater mix. Residential and commercial
water rates would need to increase - and rate
increases are always unpopular.
Five conditions would need to be met for
the desalination plant to become a reality at
the El Segundo site. Permits need to be issued
by agencies and cities, including El Segundo,
the California Coastal Commission, the State
Lands Commission, California Department of
Fish and Wildlife, and the Los Angeles County
Regional Water Quality Control Board. Then,
cost estimates would need to be verified, and
a financial plan for the desalination project be
created and approved by the board. Then, a
cost-benefit analysis would be done to give
decision-makers and the public an accurate
picture of the pros and cons of adding to the
freshwater supply with purified saltwater.
Lastly, the project design and construction
contracts and expectations would need to be
drawn up and approved.
Finding an adequate supply of water for a
million customers takes flexibility, or as Houston
calls it “a balanced approach” to water-supply
management. Through their activities, from
recycling to conservation and water-bottle
refilling stations, West Basin’s elected leaders
and their general manager are trying to reduce
dependence on state water supplies. There is
a natural supply below grounds, but that must
be managed carefully, too.
Overpumping the aquifer, especially in periods
of drought and below-average rainfall,
allows seawater to intrude. Though West Basin
holds no pumping rights, some of the recycled
water it makes daily (called designer waters)
is used to hold back seawater intrusion in the
West Coast Groundwater Basin. The claylined
natural storage is 160 square miles and
is found below the surface from Inglewood
to Santa Monica.
For those unfamiliar with “designer water,”
it’s not bottled and sold in stores. “Designer”
refers to the types of treatment that recaptured
water undergoes to become clean and usable
again. Injection back into the aquifer is one
destination. Refinery cooling towers and boiler
fees are another. The recycling facility churns
out irrigation water that moves through purplecolored
pipes that service parks, golf courses
and business parks.
When talking about clean water for urban
and industry, the term acre-foot is the standard
measure that officials use. One acre-foot
equals nearly 326,000 gallons. Today, that
amount serves three typical Southern California
households for one year. Water jargon
is fascinating, and Houston is a fountain of
information about water storage, flow rates,
and even what makes tap water taste funny.
Hint: it’s not the water itself.
While admitting to being a big fan of drinking
tap water, he’s heard the complaints from
the people at the end of the line that water
from the tap isn’t to their liking. Houston says
that the pipes running through a city or community
are responsible for that taste, which
makes both young and old avoid taking a
sip from the tap. Older homes and apartment
buildings will experience the same taste, he
says. The drinking water - even if it has some
taste issues - is safe and regularly tested to
meet state requirements.
A rumor was circulating on social media
right before the new year that Californians
were about to get slammed with draconian
water restrictions for themselves and their
households. A household would be limited
to 55 gallons of water - not enough to take
a shower and wash a load of laundry on the
same day. That caused some panic and anger
among Californians who wondered why they
just heard about it one week before the daily
caps took effect. To which Houston says,
ignore what you may have read.
Those social-media posts are more fiction
than fact. No person or homeowner will be
subjected to an indoor water-efficiency standard
of a mere 55 gallons per person, per day. The
burden of reducing consumption statewide is
on water districts and retailers, like West Basin
MWD, which sells imported and recycled
water to 17 cities along the coast.
“The confusion is based on the passage
of legislation SB 606 and AB 1668 in 2018,
which updated California’s previous water use
efficiency laws,” Houston explained. Lawmakers
did adopt long-term standards aimed at making
the water supply go further. The targets and
how to reach them are being decided, ahead
of a 2022 deadline.
No individual or property owner will be
penalized for exceeding 55 gallons a day,
though, according to Houston. State officials
expect the municipal water districts and agencies
to make the reductions across their entire
service areas. While it’s a bit confusing to the
average consumer how the new targets can be
accomplished without strict water-rationing,
Houston says the cringe-worthy daily water
limit is realistic.
If customers adopt new water-saving technology
and install higher-efficiency devices
throughout their homes, indoor water use could
fall by as much as 35 percent. Admittedly a
best-case scenario, conservation-conscious
individuals and couples could get by on 40
gallons a day, according to research by the Water
Education Foundation. “Substantial indoor
and outdoor conservation potential exists in
the single-family sector,” the group believes.
El Segundo consumers used 85 gallons daily
in September, and slightly less in December
when the consumption rate dipped to 78 gallons
per person, according to urban data from
the Pacific Institute. Inglewood customers
averaged 97 gallons in the summer and 80
during December when the weather turned
cool and wet. •
– Kimbal Musk