Water Conservation Slips During January
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A new report shows water conservation slipped during an unusually dry January in California.
The State Water Resources Control Board reported Tuesday that urban water use declined 9 percent in January compared to the same month in 2013.
The water saving plunged from December when Californians met Gov. Jerry Brown's call to slash water use by 20 percent for the first time.
Winter storms in December helped residential conservation then. January was unseasonably dry and brought no measurable rainfall in downtown San Francisco for the first time in history.
State water officials say residents must prepare for continued extreme dry conditions.
The data help monitor the effectiveness of the state's emergency conservation regulations. The state is urging continued conservation as California enters the fourth year of a drought.