Surfers stoked: Drought’s end means beachgoers get showers back
By LAYLAN CONNELLY | [email protected]
Orange County Register
There is a buzz among the surfers at Doheny State Beach this week, and it isn’t just because a new swell brought fun waves.
Surfers are stoked for another reason: showers at state beaches that had been turned off during the drought are flowing once again, meaning surfers can rinse off that messy sand and sticky salt before leaving the beach.
For some beachgoers, the move to turn the showers back on ends nearly two years of frustration – and, some claim, a health threat. California State Parks turned off the showers in July 2015, at the height of the drought and when the state was pushing in every way to cut back on water use. On April 7, Gov. Jerry Brown issued an executive order ending the drought state of emergency in most of California, except Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Tuolumne counties.