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We are in the midst of some rough times around the world at the moment. Europe is hit by a heat wave the likes of which the continent hasn't seen in ages with temperatures hitting record highs in various parts. It has led to widespread droughts and the situation isn't a whole lot better in the U.S. either.
Los Angeles has been hit very hard as well and despite new rules being put in place last year which set water budgets for homes, it seems like the celebrities aren't too bothered about following them. Former NBA superstar Dwyane Wade was the biggest offender in May, as he exceeded his budget by an astonishing 489,000 gallons!
via Yahoo:
Among the addresses that received notices was an $18-million Hidden Hills property, listed under the name of former NBA star Wade, that exceeded its allocated water budget in June by more than 1,400%, or 90,000 gallons. That was an improvement over May, when the property exceeded its budget by 489,000 gallons - more than any other customer.
Wade and his wife, actor Gabrielle Union, attributed the excess use at their property to a problem with their pool. In a statement, the couple said they have "taken drastic steps to reduce water usage in accordance with the new city guidelines and have since we moved into our home."
"We have been doing everything we can to rectify the situation and will continue to go to extensive lengths to resolve the issue," the statement said. "We have replaced all parts of our pool system that [have] to do with water flow and leakage in addition to converting to synthetic grass and drought tolerant plants to reduce our water usage. We will continue to work with the city and the water distribution company to make sure this isn't an issue moving forward."
They claim that it was an issue with the pool system and that might well be true but 489,000 gallons over the limit suggests that there was plenty of water wastage in general. Everyone needs to take better care of the resources that are available and this is disappointing on Wade's part. They added that they are working to ensure that this isn't an issue moving forward and you would hope that is the case.
Wade and his wife Gabrielle Union were recently on a vacation that she termed as part of the Wade World Tour and while they are entitled to have all the fun in the world, we hope they took good care of their surroundings while doing so.