extremely low. and it s not just lake feed. it s many of the reservoirs and lakes in this entire region. it s part of the reason why here in southern california, many are being asked to conserve water. in fact, beginning june 1st, about 6 million people are being told to only water their lawns once a week. and the situation could get worse. we spoke to the metropolitan water district of southern california, and here s what their general manager said. if i don t see the response between now and september, then i will go in mandating a full ban of outdoor watering across the service area that s impacted. that s serious. and i m ready to do it. reporter: this is the first time that the metropolitan water district of southern california implements these restrictions. they say it is unprecedented. they say it s serious because we are running out of water. camila bernal, cnn, sylmar, california.
officials realized this was going to be a problem in 2015. they started building a new valve that goes deeper into lake mead. that s being used right now. it went into operation this week. it appears to be running smoothly. people are still getting their drinking water. it goes to show how big of a problem this is. because water levels are just extremely low. and it s not just lake feed. it s many of the reservoirs and lakes in this entire region. it s part of the reason why here in southern california, many are being asked to conserve water. in fact, beginning june 1st, about 6 million people are being told to only water their lawns once a week. and the situation could get worse. we spoke to the metropolitan water district of southern california, and here s what their general manager said. if i don t see the response between now and september, then i will go in mandating a full ban of outdoor watering across the service area that s impacted. that s serious.