City officials approved updated long-range water planning documents Tuesday that map out how the city expects to meet future demand and respond to shortages — though they said residents should not expect any immediate changes to watering rules or conservation requirements.
The City Council approved both the city's 2025 Urban Water Management Plan and its updated Water Shortage Contingency Plan on the consent calendar without discussion.
Together, the documents are required under California law and serve as Riverside's blueprint for managing water supplies over the next 25 years.
The updated Urban Water Management Plan projects how much water Riverside customers are expected to use through 2050 and whether the city will have enough supply to meet that demand.
Despite concerns about drought and long-term water reliability across California, Riverside Public Utilities says current projections show the city maintaining a supply cushion throughout the planning period.
The report estimates Riverside used about 74,900 acre-feet of water in 2025 — lower than the city had forecast in its previous plan.
Demand is expected to rise over time, reaching nearly 97,600 acre-feet annually by 2050 as population growth, development and climate conditions continue to shape consumption.
To keep pace, Riverside projects expanding available supplies, including increased use of recycled water and future supply projects that will be evaluated further in a forthcoming Integrated Water Supply and Demand Management Plan.
Under the current outlook, projected supplies would remain above projected demand through 2050.
RPU staff pointed to Riverside's history of weathering drought periods without major supply disruptions and said the city has not experienced significant water shortages to date.
Council members also adopted Riverside's 2025 Water Shortage Contingency Plan — a document staff clarified is primarily a compliance and planning update rather than a policy shift.
The contingency plan is required under state law and outlines how Riverside would respond if water supplies become constrained.
The update does not create new shortage stages, impose new restrictions or expand enforcement authority.
Instead, it reorganizes Riverside's existing conservation framework to match California's standardized shortage classifications.
That means existing rules already contained in Riverside's water conservation ordinance remain the mechanism that would govern future restrictions if shortages are declared.
Those existing measures include limits on outdoor irrigation schedules, prohibitions on water waste and irrigation efficiency requirements.
Staff also noted references in the contingency plan to future possible policy discussions — including changes related to non-functional turf and irrigation language — are not being adopted through this action and would return separately through a future ordinance process if pursued.
Neither item carries a direct fiscal impact, according to city staff.
Tuesday's action comes as RPU navigates a broader set of water-related pressures. The city recently hired engineers to conduct a new cost-of-service analysis to determine how water costs should be distributed among customers once the current five-year rate plan expires in 2028 — a study that will run alongside a separate proposal to raise water rates by 5.7 percent, which was set for a public hearing before the Council this week.
Separately, a judge ruled in May that the city had billed water ratepayers unconstitutionally for years, with a final judgment in the case — which could require more than $46 million in refunds — expected within weeks.
