The Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners has announced three new city restrictions on water use in an effort to conserve water during the current drought.
Residents are now prohibited from irrigating landscape with potable water on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, according to the Long Beach Water Department website.
The Board announced two additional restrictions at Thursday’s meeting, including prohibiting restaurants from serving water unless it is specifically asked for by customers and reducing the time sprinklers can be used, according to the LBWD website.
Matthew Lyons, director of planning and water conservation for the LBWD, said he thinks the new restrictions are necessary to reduce water use.
“We’ve been saving water for a drought,” Lyons said. “We’re living off our stored water … so it’s prudent to try and preserve as much stored water as we can.”
Lyons said that Long Beach has done a good job of conserving water over the past few years. He said that saving water in the past has helped the city to bolster its water storage.
Residents can report violations of the new water prohibitions online, Lyons said.
In light of the rainstorm that recently moved across the state, he said Californians must wait few weeks before experts determine if the drought will continue.
“We’ll know by the end of April how long this [drought] might go on,” Lyons said.