The reality of the drought situation and water shortage in California has hit several Orange County cities.

Local governments in recent months have put into action a variety of programs to encourage residents to conserve water. And where that has not worked, cities have mandated conservation. These efforts have come with the realization that failure to do so could eventually hit the cities and residents with higher utility bills and possibly, penalties.

Click here to see a map that shows water usage by district.

Some cities are adopting resolutions to encourage residents to cut down their everyday water consumption. Others have tiered rate structures, which automatically impose higher rates on those who use more water. Still others slap direct fines and penalties on any type of water wastage.

Conservation could become mandatory as early as next year if the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which provides roughly half of Orange County’s water, decides to cut back city water allotments in early spring 2009.

If Metropolitan’s board votes in favor of the cutbacks, cities that do not conserve can expect to face fines. And those penalties will likely be passed on to residents.

“We’re facing a very challenging time,” said Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. “This is as challenging a drought period as we’ve been in.”

Some Orange County cities such as Westminster, Garden Grove and Anaheim recently took the first steps toward water conservation. Other cities such as Irvine, Santa Ana, Huntington Beach and San Juan Capistrano have spent the last decade or so preparing for a water emergency.

San Juan Capistrano recently approved a sweeping water conservation law under which residents with lawns and gardens could be fined if they try to water during the day. The law also bans pools from being emptied or refilled more than once every seven years, barring repairs and health and safety issues.

Signs such as the poor water runoff from the Sierra Nevada Mountains last spring prompted the city to take such measures, said Francie Kennedy, San Juan Capistrano’s water conservation coordinator.

“It’s being called a crisis and a perfect storm of water situations,” Kennedy said. “They add up to a critical water supply situation.”

Anaheim, among the county’s most populated cities, approved a resolution earlier this month asking residents and businesses to cut back on water usage.

The call for voluntary water conservation applies to the city’s 54,000 residential units and 7,000 commercial customers, including major water users such as Disneyland, Angel Stadium and the Honda Center.

“Anaheim’s outreach campaign and our enhanced conservation programs have allowed us to currently hold off on recommending greater appeals for water-use reduction,” Mayor Curt Pringle said.

Pringle said Anaheim has a record of conserving water. While Anaheim’s population has increased 36 percent in 20 years, water usage has gone up just 7 percent in that time.

Some of the larger water users, such as Disneyland, are already taking conservation measures, such as weather-monitoring sprinklers that only water at night.

Garden Grove is now reminding residents about a resolution passed in 1997 that encourages residents to conserve at least 10 percent of their water consumption, said David Entsminger, the city’s water services manager.

“We’ve been doing everything from television spots to water bill inserts to create awareness among residents,” he said.

The Westminster City Council last month unanimously approved the city’s first water conservation resolution. It encourages residents to conserve 10 percent of their water.

“We’re hoping that people will do their part to conserve water without having to make it mandatory,” said Marwan Youssef, city public works director.

Both Garden Grove and Westminster, however, use the lowest total amount of water in the county. Some of the big water users include Yorba Linda, Orange Park Acres and Trabuco Canyon. Santa Ana is the lowest water user in the county with per capita water usage at 75 gallons.

But if Metropolitan’s board members vote in favor of charging penalty rates to each Orange County city and reduce each city’s access to out-of-region water, the hammer could fall on the cities rather quickly.

The effects of such cutbacks could vary from city to city. Some residents could be restricted from hosing off their driveways and watering lawns during the day. Others could be charged double or triple their normal rates for using more water than allotted. Restrictions on car washes, commercial laundries and restaurants are already in some cities’ conservation plans.

Kightlinger says environmental and political pressures are clamping shut Orange County’s traditional water sources from the north and the east. About half of the county’s water comes from either the Colorado River or from a network of reservoirs and rivers near the San Franciso Bay. That water comes from Metropolitan, which allocates water to the cities based on their needs.

The cutbacks are expected to begin as early as March, when snow pack and river flow critical to Orange County’s water needs can be measured, Kightlinger said.

In June, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought after two years of below average rainfall. This declaration is the first since 1991 when Gov. Pete Wilson signed the order in the fifth year of a drought that lasted into 1992.

Kightlinger said the main challenge Metropolitan is facing is that supplies are not keeping up with demand despite reservoirs that were built to cushion Orange County from a water emergency.

For many years, the region used more than its allotted water supply that came from the Colorado River. But with remarkable growth in Las Vegas and Arizona, pressure mounted on California cities to draw only its allotted portion of water from the river.

“Everyone knew a day was coming when that surplus water would not be there,” Kightlinger said.

Apparently some Orange County cities have foreseen that and taken more drastic measures to give residents a taste of what’s coming.

Irvine has the county’s most sophisticated five-tiered rate structure, which has been in place since 1992.

“This is not something you do just during a drought,” said Fiona Sanchez, water conservation manager for the Irvine Ranch Water District.

The rate system basically classifies residents into five tiers based on their water usage. It’s simple, Sanchez says. The more water you use, the more you pay.

As a result, between 1992 and 2005, the average landscape water use within the district decreased by 61 percent. Single-family homes have reduced their consumption from 120 gallons in 1992 to 90 gallons now.

Thanks to the tiered system, the district is now “well-placed” to handle the shortage, Sanchez said.

The city of Santa Ana has a two-tiered water rate structure, which has led to significant water conservation, said Water Resources Manager Thom Coughran.

Although the city passed its ordinance in February encouraging residents to conserve water, Santa Ana got the ball rolling about 12 years ago, Coughran said.

“As soon as we implemented the tiered rate system, we conserved 7 to 8 percent and we’ve flat-lined since,” he said.

Santa Ana has also cut back on water spent on landscaping, by not watering parks and medians one day in a week, as has Huntington Beach.

Garden Grove is considering a change to its ordinance to allow artificial turf in residents’ yards.

“Times are changing and we have to change with them,” Garden Grove Mayor Bill Dalton said. “We know artificial turf conserves water and reduces our water bills. We must offer people alternatives.”

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Cutbacks are coming

Cities take drastic steps