How long will L.A. have to live with new restrictions on water use?

As California endures another summer of drought and heat waves, Angelenos will once again have to keep a close eye on their water use.

The City of Los Angeles has imposed a conservation ordinance that will limit residents to watering their lawns only two days a week. Municipalities will also issue fines to people who don’t obey the restrictions.

“They’re also putting in restrictors for people who continue to irrigate — because irrigation is one of the big consumers of water,” said Jill Lockard, a planetary science professor at Pierce College, “so they’re actually going to start putting in restrictors so that your showers and your sinks will work fine, but you cannot get enough water flow to irrigate.”

Even after a blazing summer, Los Angeles was able to conserve water at an historic pace. L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti says that the city notched a record-low water usage rate in the month of August. Water usage was down 10% from two years ago.

Since its founding as a royal pueblo in the 18th century, Los Angeles has  had to live with water restrictions of one sort or another, says William Bowen, a former CSUN professor. Now, an ongoing drought in California and the Southwest is a major factor behind the restrictions.

“The current situation,” Bowen says, “is just the latest page in a huge book of crises that now stretches back almost 200 years.”

According to Governor Gavin Newsom’s office, California’s water supply will shrink 10% by 2040. Two other main sources of California water Lake Mead and Lake Powell are also feeling the impacts of the current drought. Both lakes are filled to about 25% of their normal capacity, according to federal government data.

Bowen contends that another factor in the restrictions is California’s allocation of water to agriculture.

California has become one of the most productive agricultural regions in the world, a feat that wouldn’t be possible without irrigation, according to the state’s Department of Water Resources.

“The state exports a huge quantity of agricultural products,” the department says on its website, “bringing more than $20 billion into California’s economy.”

However, Professor Bowen says that domestic water use throughout the entire state accounts for only 5% of the entire water budget of the state.

“If you look at it on the state level, agriculture uses about 80% of the water in the state. It returns about 4% of the state’s budget,” Bowen says.

By contrast, urban areas use far less water — about 10 to 15% of the state’s total, Bowen said. He also pointed out that the state’s most lucrative industries are located in urban areas.

In her own life, Lockard has taken steps to consume less water, turning off the tap while brushing her teeth and while working in the kitchen.

“I don’t wash my car in the driveway anymore,” Lockard says. Instead, she “drives[s] through [a car wash] where they recycle the water …

“Little changes,” Lockard adds, “can at least make people think about what the problem is. But as we’ve said, irrigation and agriculture are the biggest of the problems and we can’t directly impact that.”

“I would say in terms of living with the restrictions, it depends on how well people follow them.” Lockard says.

This show was reported and produced by Jailene Aguilera, Victor Bretado, Andre Lopez and Nicole San Juan