Editor, Ceres Courier,

Either the water people made an ignorant error in judgment or they found a sinister way to make a lot of money in fines this fall. I hope it's the former. The schedule of our water limits, if not corrected, is going to cause most Ceres residents to take a HUGE penalty hit on our November bill (for October usage). Or, in October, we will be forced to let die all the plants we worked hard all summer to keep alive.

What am I talking about?

The schedule for our water limits has us dropping to 7,000 gallons for October, but this is right after summer is only "officially" over - October is historically still a very warm month and our yards still require higher levels of water to survive. Not-so-much in April, which is designated as a "summer" month (27,000 gallons). Since 2011 (the beginning of meters) my average for October usage has been 50 percent more than the same average for April (some years it's closer, but October is always higher). What will jump in November is the fines - $150 fines will be very common on November bills (for October usage).

If nothing else, the schedule needs to be changed because we don't live in an instant "summer on, summer off" world - April and October are clearly transitional months. Much more reasonable would be 20,000 gallons for October and 14,000 for April. This maintains the same total for the year and will much more closely reflect our typical water needs.

Sam Williams,
Ceres

LETTERS POLICY: Letters to the editor will be considered for publication but must be signed and include an address and phone number. Letters should be 250 words or less and be void of libel. Letters may be sent to The Ceres Courier, 138 S. Center Street, Turlock CA 95380 or emailed to jeffb@cerescourier.com.