Water Conservation Part Of San Francisco Giants Catcher Buster Posey's 2016 Plans
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) - Buster Posey would like to clear up one thing about his property landing on a list of excessive water users in the drought-ravaged Bay Area: The San Francisco Giants catcher insists he worked with landscapers to take appropriate measures to save water before he and his wife moved into their suburban home in 2013.
"We take the water stuff extremely serious," he told The Associated Press on Thursday before his first spring-training workout. "As soon as we moved into our home there, our landscapers made adjustments, like changing the sprinkler system to drip, trying to be more efficient. My wife and I are very cognizant about showers and whatnot."
He was charged a penalty by East Bay Municipal Utility District, which said by law it must release the names of customers on such lists when a public records request is made. Posey and wife Kristen live in Lafayette, California - in the East Bay hills - along with their 4-year-old twins, Lee and Addison. The Poseys haven't been on any subsequent excessive water use lists since that one time in December. They were listed for using 272 units of water over the 59-day billing cycle.
EBMUD spokeswoman Andrea Pook said Thursday an average single family household uses approximately 250 gallons per day.
Posey called it "unfortunate" that EBMUD "wanted to try and embarrass people," yet Pook said that has never been the intent. Media outlets chose to publish the list of excessive users, she said.
"The program is new. It's a learning curve for us, too," Pook said by phone from the Bay Area. "Our goal is to work with our customers to meet the Governor's drought restrictions."
Billy Beane, the Oakland Athletics' executive vice president of baseball operations, was on the same December list for excessive water use at his Danville, California, home and faced a penalty. He has since cut back on his water usage, the team said.
In fact, of those on the excessive use list, 70 percent who were charged a penalty have since decreased their water usage by 30 percent or more, Pook said, noting, "That's a lot of water to save."
Added Posey with a smile: "I'm glad we're getting rain now. ... Again, it's something we take seriously."
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
