The Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency held its 2019 Open House on Saturday in celebration of Water Awareness Month.
Located at Central Park, the open house featured a number of booths, tours and presentations, most of which were dedicated to spreading awareness of water conservancy.
“We’re only open during business hours, and a lot of people work obviously, so this gives them a chance to talk with our staff,” said Kathie Martin, public information officer for SCV Water. “We also have a a lot of community members offering a lot of things related to environmental sustainability and conservation.”
SCV Water has held the event annually during the month of May, which is recognized as Water Awareness Month, Martin said. The event is designed to inform people not only about conservancy, but where their water comes from.
“So many people turn their tap and water comes out and they don’t think about where its been and who’s delivering it,” said Martin. “This gives us a chance to let them know that there is people behind that safe clean water that is getting to their sink.”
Martin said that for a community in California, especially southern California, it is important for citizens to have a knowledge of how irrigation and water systems work.
“A lot of people don’t know that, in Santa Clarita, half of our water comes from aquifers underground and the other half comes from the snowpack in the Sierras and makes its way down to Santa Clarita,” Martin said.
People each year during the event can come and take a tour of water treatment plant and learn what happens when the water gets to Santa Clarita and before they send it out, Martin said.
During the event, SCV water handed out free snacks to children while parents could receive free of charge shower heads, sprinkler heads, irrigation timer and pool cover rebates. They also had a chance to meet with some of the vendors present, like Physis Design, which works in resilient landscapes and xeriscaping.
“We use up to 30 percent on our yards which is a lot when we don’t have enough water … there’s just not enough water in southern California,” said Tony Pogue, owner of Physis Designs and a vendor present at the SCV Water Open House. “I’m trying to show people how to put less of it outside and use more it inside for humans to use.”
For more information about SCV Water, visit their website at yourscvwater.com.