California's water usage jumped nearly 19% in March.
Water flies from a sprinkler watering a lawn, in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, May 10, 2022. California's water usage jumped nearly 19% in March during one of the driest months on record, state officials announced, Tuesday, May 10, 2022. – California's water use jumped dramatically in March, state officials said Tuesday, as one of the driest stretches on record prompted a wave of homeowners to start watering their lawns earlier than usual in defiance of Gov.
But the first three months of 2022 have been the driest on record. Californians averaged 77 gallons per person per day in March, an 18.9% increase from March 2020. It's the most water Californians have used in March since the middle of the previous drought in 2015. Statewide, water consumption is up just 3.
In Los Angeles — the second most populous city in the U.S. — Mayor Eric Garcetti said residents and businesses would have to reduce outdoor landscape watering from three days per week to two. Irrigation makes up 35% of the city’s water use.Urban water use accounts for a relatively small percentage of California's overall water use when compared to agriculture.
But California got just 1 inch of precipitation in March while the temperatures were 3 degrees warmer than usual, further increasing water demand.