To face the looming drought this summer, Los Angeles' Department of Water and Power employing it's Water Conservation Team, formerly called the Drought Busters, to patrol L.A. neighborhoods and make sure residents aren't wasting water. But is this team nothing more than a public relations tactic by the DWP or do they actually make a difference in water conservation?
The Drought Busters started in Los Angeles during the major drought in the early '90s. They disappeared for more than a decade, but in late 2007, DWP brought the team back.
"The water situation in Los Angeles is very dire. We have been wasting what little water L.A. has," said Dr. Mike Pibuzzari, Director of Environmental Engineering at University of Southern California.
"The team was reactivated last year because we had to erratic years of snowfall and rainfall," said Jane Galbraith, LADWP Conservation spokesperson. "In order to educate people more effectively, we re-instituted the Water Conservation Team to send into the community and talk about water use."
The Water Conservation Team relies almost completely on calls and e-mails from the public to report water wasters in their neighborhood.
"If we see someone violating, we will introduce ourselves and try to explain the ordinances as best as possible to have everyone in L.A. to be a member of our team," said David Jones, a member of the Water Conservation Team.
David Jones pinpoints water waste during a typical work day.
Team members give violators helpful tips on how to conserve water. The first violation is an education lesson and a warning. A second violation is a $100 fine, the third a $200 fine, and the fourth a $300 fine. Jones says repeat offenders are rare.
"Surprisingly enough, the bulk of the people I speak to realize the significance," Jones said. "What I find is for the most is that they do listen and they do want to do their part. And I don't think it's just because of the fine, but I think it's because of the water situation here in California."
Activities like hosing down sidewalks is a major source of water waste and an automatic citation.
Jones typically receives around a half-dozen calls per day. Most of the calls are by citizens reporting their neighbors having sprinklers on in the middle of the day. This is one of the biggest ways that L.A. citizens waste water. On a hot day, most of the sprinkler water evaporates before it can even provide the plants with nutrients. Outdoor water use accounts for 70% of water usage in Los Angeles, according the the Metroplitan Water District's Bob Muir.
"The outdoors offers the next horizon, the next place we need to look to cut water use because that's really where most of the water is being applied these days," Muir said.
The MWD plans to run an aggressive water conservation campaign during the summer months to urge people to watch their water use. DWP expects a spike in water use this summer and Jones knows he will be busy, but he thinks the Water Conservation Team will make a difference.
"People take part in summertime activities - parents letting their kids play in the sprinklers, turning on the fire hydrants, things of that nature. But if our presence is out there, I doubt very seriously that we'll have a lot of offenders," Jones said. "In the beginning of the summer on hot days, we may have a significant number of violators, but after our presence is made, especially with the number of members we have coming aboard, that'll stop, the numbers will drop."
"The water situation in Los Angeles is very dire," according to Dr. Mike Pibuzzari.
The team currently consists of 14 full-time employees who drive around in Toyota Prius hybrid cars. LADWP plans to increase the number of full-time employees to 19. But with 19 full-time employees making an average of more than $73,000 per year, the program is costly.
Currently the budget of the Conservation Team is nearly $1.8 million per year, which includes:
- $1.27 million in salaries
- $125,000 in overtime
- $260,000 in vehicles
These numbers do not include five future employees, which will add nearly half a million dollars a year to the budget.
"The team is there to educate people, not to issue citations," Galbraith said. "I mean, it's hardly a money-making citation. It costs a lot to run the program."
The team has already made more than 3000 citations, but very few of those have been monetary.
"That's why we changed the name from the Drought Busters to its current name. To be 'busted' sounds too hard-hitting, whereas Water Conservation Team is more bearable," Jones said.
But critics of the Water Conservation Team say it is nothing more than a P.R. ploy by the DWP to make it appear to the public as if it is doing something.
David Coffin is a member of the Westchester Neighborhood Council and runs a blog that has a major focus on water issues in Los Angeles. He believes the water conservation team isn't tackling the right issue.
"The Water Conservation Team misses the boat, which is growth. It's the largest factor in creating the drought. The more people there are, the more water they will use," Coffin said.
Coffin doesn't agree with the tactics the team uses to find water wasters.
"It's not a healthy thing when we get a neighbor to turn in another neighbor. I don't really find that to be a very healthy thing," Coffin said.
But Jones insists that the reports are always anonymous and that when it comes to water waste, citizens usually don't have a problem calling in their water-wasting neighbors.
"When a customer calls in a neighbor, they always remain anonymous. Always," said Jones.
USC professor Pibuzzari thinks educating the public is an effective way to conserve water, but wonders if the team is targeting the right people.
"It's part of developing a habit. The best thing is to start with younger kids. If you start teaching older people, they may comply with certain things, but there's nothing like a young kid to get them to start changing their habits," Pibuzzari said.
But can 19 full-time employees make a difference in a city of nearly 10 million people?
"I don't think it changes anything. They don't have very many people out there enforcing it," Coffin said. "It looks great on TV. The mayor can say we have a presence out there, but it's not going to solve any problems. It's just frosting. It's just lipstick on a pig."
Mayor Antonio Villraigosa announcing the reactivation of the Drought Busters in late 2007.
Galbraith argues that it does more than punish people - it shows the public that DWP is doing something.
"I think what it does is when the team reps drive around in their cars, it puts a face on the department and makes them look proactive. We don't have that other than ads and posters, so how do we communicate with our customer base that water is precious?"
Whether it's a PR ploy or not, the program is here to stay.
"Right now we don't see any long-term changes in the weather pattern. And as long as we have drought conditions and regulatory restrictions on pumping, they're going to be around," Galbraith said.
At this point, any program to promote water conservation is a step in the right direction.
"We have been wasting water for so many years, it's become a part of our tradition," Pibuzzari said. "So anything that would conserve water and is practical as far as being accepted should be welcomed at this stage."
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