Gov. Brown has lifted the drought emergency in California but that doesn’t mean conservation efforts are ending. Max Gomberg is the conservation manager for State Water Resources and says measures put in place in 2014 may have ended Friday but they should remain a guideline for moving forward. Gomberg noted how Kern County was among the last areas to be out of the drought and our groundwater still has not recovered. He also says state agencies will be working with local providers to assure good practices continue. For example, Bakersfield has two water providers and City Water customers have declined in conservation during the wet winter. Cal Water is the other provider and their customers have maintained conservation.

Sean Michael Lisle