Average water use (January 6, 2015)

In an earlier letter to the editor, John Pedigo made it sound as if everyone in Apple Valley would be paying 28 percent more for water because of Ranchos, but when I produced the actual wording of the rate increase from the CPUC, he then had to acknowledge that the rates he finds so threatening are only for those using a lot of water (Correcting distortion, Daily Press, January 6, 2016).

In this latest letter, though, the picture begins to emerge. His family of three uses almost 17 units of water per billing cycle. Yikes! As a point of reference, my wife and I (each retired), on a half-acre lot with mature landscaping, use three units per billing cycle. Pedigo then tries to present himself as water wise, although he has no idea why his water use is so high.

To him and anyone else like him in Apple Valley, I would urge a call to Apple Valley Ranchos Water Company to schedule a water audit, to find out where all that water is going.

This wasteful usage of water is unsustainable in our area. If it keeps up, then yes, there most definitely will be future increases in water rates.

Greg Raven is Co-Chair of Apple Valley Citizens for Government Accountability, and is concerned about quality of life issues.

— Published: Daily Press, January 14, 2016