While the water districts of south Orange County appear well-poised to handle this second year of drought, most of that region is almost entirely dependent on imported water and officials are busy developing alternative sources.

An online gathering of top water officials on Friday, June 25, detailed the current water availability in south county and outlined projects to supplant imports should future flows from northern California and the Colorado River be curtailed by dwindling supplies or interrupted by earthquakes.

“The bad news for California as a whole and the West overall is that we’re in a serious drought,” said Rob Hunter, general manager of the Municipal Water District of Orange County. His district receives imported water from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and distributes it to local agencies in the county.

(LINK).