SACRAMENTO — Urban Californians’ monthly water conservation was 19.5 percent in October, a slight improvement from September.

State-mandated conservation targets have been in place since October 2015.

Since then, 2.26 million acre-feet of water has been saved — enough water to supply more than 11 million people, or more than one-quarter the state’s 38 million population for a year, estimates the State water Resources Control Board.

Although autumn rain in Northern California provided an encouraging start to the 2016-2017 water year, 73 percent of the state remains in drought conditions.

Story Date: December 20, 2016