Water Shortage Contingency Plan

West Basin’s Water Shortage Contingency Plan (WSCP) provides the District with a flexible set of response actions to address future water shortages, including enhanced outreach and education, increased coordination with local water agencies, and implementation of new water efficiency programs.

Shortage Levels

The WSCP includes six standard water shortage levels, corresponding to increasingly severe shortage conditions as compared to normal reliability conditions. Each level aligns with specific response actions that West Basin can implement to address and resolve any current or expected supply-demand gaps created by the associated shortage.

Water Shortage Response Actions Table

Shortage Level	Percent Shortage Range	Shortage Response Actions
0	0% (Normal)	During non-shortage conditions, West Basin develops, implements, and provides cost-effective water-efficiency and conservation programs to local communities in its service area to help save water and increase local water supply reliability. In addition, West Basin educates and engages its community about important water issues through outreach and education programs. Together, these programs highlight the importance of adopting a Water Conservation as a Way of Life mindset as a means of supporting ongoing water supply reliability throughout the region.
1	0-10%	At this shortage level, West Basin will implement one or more of the following shortage response actions: Call for voluntary retailer water use reductions Call for voluntary retailer use of non-imported potable water sources Implement additional conservation/water efficiency programs Deploy public outreach and communications measures Implement mandatory retailer water use reductions (West Basin’s Drought Rationing Plan)
2	10-20%	At this shortage level, West Basin will implement and expand one or more of the shortage response actions listed for Level 1 to achieve a demand reduction target of up to 20%
3	20-30%	At this shortage level, West Basin will implement and expand one or more of the shortage response actions listed for Level 1 to achieve a demand reduction target of up to 30%
4	30-40%	At this shortage level, West Basin will implement and expand one or more of the shortage response actions listed for Level 1 to achieve a demand reduction target of up to 40%
5	40-50%	At this shortage level, West Basin will implement and expand one or more of the shortage response actions listed for Level 1 to achieve a demand reduction target of up to 50%
6	>50%	At this shortage level, West Basin will implement and expand one or more of the shortage response actions listed for Level 1 to achieve a demand reduction target of more than 50%

Shortage Level 3 (2021)

West Basin Declares Shortage Level 3

On November 22, 2021, the West Basin Board of Directors activated the district’s Water Shortage Contingency Plan (WSCP), entering into Shortage Level 3 of the WSCP.

VIEW BOARD RESOLUTION
VIEW PRESS RELEASE

The decision to declare Shortage Level Three of the WSCP was based on the following factors:

Increasing severity of the statewide drought
Governor Newsom’s state emergency drought declaration
Metropolitan Water District’s regional emergency drought declaration
Need to proactively ensure water reliability in the midst of worsening conditions

Shortage Level 1 (2021)

West Basin Declares Shortage Level 1

On July 26, 2021, the West Basin Board of Directors activated the district’s Water Shortage Contingency Plan (WSCP), entering into Shortage Level 1 of the WSCP.

VIEW BOARD RESOLUTION
VIEW PRESS RELEASE

The decision to declare Shortage Level One of the WSCP was based on the following factors:

Increasing severity of the statewide drought
Governor Newsom’s Executive Order requesting voluntary 15% reduction in statewide water use
Metropolitan Water District’s calls for member agencies to reduce water use in order to preserve regional water storage reserves
West Basin’s long-standing role as a leader in promoting water efficiency programs and a conservation-minded ethic throughout the service area.

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