Perris, CA (September 24, 2021) — Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) encourages its customers to “Keep It Up” or “Step It Up” with their outdoor water use efficiency efforts as California continues to experience historic drought conditions this fall.

A large majority of EMWD customers maintain their water efficient budgets and EMWD encourages those customers to “Keep It Up.” However, with reservoir levels falling throughout the state and an uncertain forecast for winter storms, all Californians have been asked to find ways to become even more efficient to help the state stretch its water supplies.

EMWD encourages customers who are exceeding water budgets to “Step It Up” by focusing their efforts on outdoor irrigation, where more than 60 percent of water is used throughout EMWD’s 555-square mile service area and where the most opportunity for change exists at residential properties.

“EMWD customers have for many years been statewide leaders in water use efficiency, and we ask that our customers continue those efforts,” EMWD Board President Phil Paule said. “For customers looking to improve their outdoor irrigation efficiencies, EMWD is proud to offer a number of new and innovative programs to assist with reducing their outdoor irrigation while maintaining a beautiful and water-efficient landscape.”

EMWD’s recently introduced Landscapes for Living program is available to all residential customers in EMWD’s service area. It includes device rebates on weather-based irrigation controllers and drip systems, and EMWD will assist in installing the equipment. It also offers a wide variety of educational resources and turf removal funding to help customers remove grass and replace it with water-efficient landscaping.

EMWD appreciates the efforts by customers to use water wisely and support long-term investments in infrastructure and programs that have prepared the region to meet customer needs during prolonged and cyclical water supply shortages.

For more information, we encourage customers to visit www.emwd.org/water-supply-status.

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Eastern Municipal Water District is the water, wastewater service and recycled water provider to nearly one million people living and working within a 555-square mile service area in western Riverside County. It is California’s sixth-largest retail water agency, and its mission is “To deliver value to our diverse customers and the communities we serve by providing safe, reliable, economical and environmentally sustainable water, wastewater and recycled water services.”
More information can be found at www.emwd.org.