Photo by Steve Johnson from Pexels Persistent dry conditions in the Mokelumne River watershed in the Sierra Nevada may prompt the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) Board of Directors on Tuesday to declare a Stage 1 drought and establish a voluntary water use reduction goal of ten percent district-wide. EBMUD’s drought-response plan also proposes to purchase supplemental water supplies from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s Central Valley Project and divert water from the Freeport Regional Water Project in Sacramento, among other measures. “To date, 2021 has been the second driest year on record in the Mokelumne River basin and the driest year on record for the East Bay,” according to EBMUD.