WEBVTT	#Elemental Media Engine(TM) 2.17.1.0

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In California we've been
sold this dream for so

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long that we think that
it's almost a right that

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we must have a green lawn
and we have a right to

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keep our grass alive.

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We don't realize that
this was a desert prior to

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us. When the Native
Americans lived here, none

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of this land had tropical
plants in it, and

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unfortunately they
require a lot of water.

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But we just don't have
the water for it anymore.

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Part of my job is
patrolling the streets for

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water abusers and
enforcing our conservation

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rules. And I'll actually
say either run off a

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broken sprinkler,
irrigating on the wrong

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times and 48 hours after
rain.

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Are we water cops?

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Not like you would think
a normal cop would be, but

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yes, we do enforce rules
and we do basically hand

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out fines for abuse.

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My name is Fernando
Gonzalez. I'm 43 years old

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and I'm a water operator
in Calabasas, California.

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I currently make $70,000
a year, but I'm looking to

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make just under 100,000
with overtime.

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Normally they have an
address marker out here,

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but for some reason this
house doesn't.

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So I'm going to put a
door tag on their door.

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Prepare that real quick.

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Prior to this, I worked
in industrial sales and

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distribution. I was a
plant manager and it was

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trending to being an
indoor desk job and less

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of a hands on job.

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And it's really not what
I wanted.

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I've grown up always
being outdoors.

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I'm a son of a pool man.

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I've been cleaning pools
since I was a kid and I

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was always used to being
out in the field and out

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and about. So I already
kind of understood basic

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water chemistry, and I
thought I understood a

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lot. But I come to find
out that there's way more

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to it. I went to school,
took six courses, got my

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water certification and
passed my licenses.

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For someone to be able to
work in this industry, you

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have to hold either a
water distribution license

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or a treatment license.

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I currently hold both.

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A large part of me taking
this position here has

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been job security.

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No matter what, we're
always going to need

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water.

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Climate change has made a
big difference to how our

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hydrological cycle is
being affected.

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I'm a California native,
born and raised and you

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see the lakes running
low.

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You see the wildlife and
things being affected.

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You can see that animals
are coming down out of the

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mountains into urban
areas to eat because their

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food sources are being
affected up to where they

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normally live. The stakes
are extremely high.

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I wake up at three in the
morning. I leave my house

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by four and I'm here at
the district by five.

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I actually work a little
bit overtime in the

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morning, both in our
emerging technologies of

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pure water filtration, as
well as doing drought

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patrol and driving around
and looking for violators.

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Yeah, I mean, you have to
use all your senses while

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you're out here because
you might not see the

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irrigation, that it might
be on the side lot or the

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back lot. But you can
hear the irrigation going

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and you have to
investigate a little

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further. Morning.

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You can see the meter's
moving. That means water

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is passing through the
meter. So this is maybe

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draining of a pool or
something like that.

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Every day is different.

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You never really know
what you're going to do

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today, where you're going
to be, what visits you're

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going to have to do.

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We've always had to speak
with customers and do site

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visits, but I think due
to the drought, it's grown

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exponentially. We spend
more time than ever

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actually speaking with
customers because of the

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drought, because of the
restrictions.

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And it really does bring
out more opportunity for

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us to interact with them.

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It's a difficult
conversation we have with

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customers because a
majority of them bought

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their properties for the
curb appeal of the lush

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garden. We prefer the
casualty be the lawn over

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the people. That's not
enough of deterrent for

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people who have the means
and the money to just pay

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their way out of it.
That's where the flow

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restrictor came into
place. That's without a

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restrictor, and this
restrictor will go in

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place.

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It's a washer with a 1/16
hole in the center that

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allows just under two
gallons of water flow to

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go to the house, which is
enough for human

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consumption. Most shower
heads are 1.6 gallons per

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minute, so it gives you
just enough for a shower,

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gives you enough for
preparing your food, but

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not enough for you to run
your irrigation system or

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any high flowing system
in the property.

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We only use it with homes
that are not complying

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with every other manner
of communication that

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we've tried. It's
actually been working as a

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deterrent. So for the
most part we really

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haven't installed as many
as the fines that have

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gone out. We're not the
enemy.

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I take no satisfaction in
taking water away from you

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or restricting your water
or handing in fines for

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you. I start at one end
of the district and work

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my way out every other
day so I don't hit the

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same neighborhoods twice
in the same two weeks.

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A lot of times they don't
know that they had a

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broken sprinkler head or
they didn't know that

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their irrigation timer
was set incorrectly.

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So we'll give them the
time to to adjust that.

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As most Southern
Californians, we don't

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really know where our
water comes from.

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We just open the tap and
then assume that it's

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always there. We try to
warn people that if you