LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A bill focused on saving water across Nevada is another step closer to becoming law.
Assembly Bill 220 could force homeowners with septic tanks to pay to convert to a municipal sewer as well as allow the Southern Nevada Water Authority to cut off higher water users.
"This is all a matter of increasing our water efficiency," Bronson Mack, the outreach manager for the Southern Nevada Water Authority, told Channel 13 last week. "All the water that is used in a septic system is consumed whereas the water that goes into a sanitary sewer system gets recycled and returned back to Lake Mead and we're just looking to maximize our water resources."
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The bill also contains a provision that would allow SNWA to limit water distributed residents whose water use is deemed excessive.
It passed the Assembly on Monday with 30 yeas and 12 nays.
On Tuesday, the bill was read in the state Senate for the first time and has been referred to the Committee on Natural Resources.
The SNWA said the measure is needed to conserve water as the Colorado River continues to shrink.
The average household in Southern Nevada uses 10,700 gallons of water per single month, or 130,000 gallons a year, Mack told Channel 13. He says that's pretty good conservation.
A.B. 220 would allow the agency to crack down on the top 10% of residential water users — which, combined, use about 35% of all water delivered to residents, Mack has said.
"Our conservation efforts have allowed us to meet our community water demands without making any significant changes to our quality of life," he said in a previous interview with Channel 13. "A.B. 220 would help us continue to meet those community water demands going forward."
According to Bureau of Reclamation data, between March 2014 and March 2023, water levels at Lake Mead have gone down 55 feet.
However, help could be on the way thanks to an above-average snowpack this year.nA federal study released last week shows Lake Mead could rise 20 feet by the end of 2023.
