Hayward relaxes water shortage restrictions as drought conditions improve
Responding to improved drought conditions, the City of Hayward has relaxed certain water shortage restrictions on non-essential water use under its Water Shortage Contingency Plan (WSCP), but is continuing to encourage conservation and enforce its prohibitions on wasteful water practices.
The City Council voted on June 6 to return Hayward to Level 1 of the WSCP, which sets forth a variety of programs, recommendations, guidelines and increasingly restrictive regulations and requirements depending water shortage severity. These responses range from least restrictive Level 0 to most restrictive Level 5, which carries emergency water-usage cuts of 50 percent or more for residential and business customers.
Level 1 measures currently in force include encouraging use of dish washing and laundry machines only at their full capacity; lawn replacement rebates; a requirement that irrigation leaks are fixed within five days; and prohibitions on watering and irrigation of landscaping between 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., except by use of handheld devices, hoses with automatic shutoff, or for irrigation system repair.
The City also continues to offer several other rebate programs, discounts and free water conservation fixtures to assist with conservation efforts—including free low-flow faucet aerators and showerheads, which can save an average household 500 to 2,300 gallons of water per year.
For more information on these other water conservation programs and initiatives, please visit www.hayward-ca.gov/water-conservation. To learn about wasteful water practices prohibited by law in the City, go online here to the Prohibition of Wasteful Water Practices section of the City’s Municipal Code.
