Comments wanted on updated water plan

The South Coast Water District customers can comment on the district’s updated Urban Water Management Plan by e-mail, regular mail or at two meetings.

The proposed update details how drinking water will be provided in the next 30 years and will be voted on at the June 23 board meeting. Once adopted, the plan will be incorporated into the management plan of Metropolitan Water District of Sothern California, which supplies imported water to the district.

The deadline to submit comments is 5 p.m. June 23. Comments can be sent to [email protected] or South Coast Water District, P. O. Box 30205, Laguna Niguel, CA. 92607. Public comments will also be accepted at the Engineering & Operations Committee meeting at 1 p.m. Monday in the district’s administrative office, 31592 West St., Laguna Beach, and at the board of directors meeting at 6 p.m. June 23 in the Dana Point City Council Chambers, 33282 Golden Lantern.

The state requires updates every five years.

The draft may be reviewed at https://www.scwd.org or at the administrative office, open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays.

About 20% of the district’s water is harvested locally, while the rest is imported from Northern California and the Colorado River, sources that are becoming increasingly unreliable and expensive, district officials reported.

The district plans to invest an estimated $55 million to decrease its dependence from imported water by nearly 50%, committing itself to developing local groundwater supplies, participating in ocean desalination projects, expanding the recycled water system and improving recycled water quality.