VISTA - While the county's main water wholesaler is hoping voluntary conservation and other measures can get the region through a looming water crisis, at least one local agency is considering taking a harder line.

In the next few weeks, perhaps as soon as Wednesday, the Vista Irrigation District's board will discuss whether it's appropriate to declare a Stage Two water alert - something the agency hasn't done since the early 1990s, officials said.

For Vista, a Stage Two alert means, among other things, that residents can't water lawns for more than 10 minutes per day, restaurants can't serve water unless asked and customers have less time to repair leaks. Other water agencies define Stage Two alerts in different ways.

The Vista district would be the second water agency in the county to enact tighter restrictions in recent months. In September, the Fallbrook Public Utility District stepped up conservation rules for its customers.

The water wholesaler, the San Diego County Water Authority, and its supplier, the Metropolitan Water District, haven't imposed mandatory restrictions, aside from agricultural cuts. The water authority is estimating it can meet the county's water needs at least through 2008.

However, officials said, that could change if people don't take conservation seriously.

"We're not recommending mandatory cutbacks or mandatory conservation right now," said Ken Weisberg, water resources manager for the water authority.

"But that doesn't alleviate the need to conserve water," he added. "Because if we can't do it voluntarily, we're going to have to do it on a mandatory basis."

If that happens, the Vista Irrigation District doesn't want to be caught off guard, board member Paul Dorey said.

"There are not any good signs," Dorey said. "We're just getting prepared."

Years of drought, along with a recent federal court decision, have raised the specter of possible water cuts in San Diego. Regional officials have suggested that Southern California could see a 30 percent cut of its water from the north due to the court ruling, which was intended to protect an endangered fish.

"I think it's a serious situation," said Roy Coox, the Vista Irrigation District's assistant general manager.

In September, the Fallbrook Public Utility District became the first local water agency to declare a Stage Two alert. However, Fallbrook's Stage Two is roughly equivalent to the Vista Irrigation District's Stage One alert, according to a Vista district report.

A spokeswoman for the Fallbrook district said their Stage Two recommendations aren't extreme.

"It's basically just common-sense restrictions," said the spokeswoman, Noelle Denke. "We're not putting out the water cops. We're asking people to do … voluntary things that they really should be doing all the time."

When the agency has received complaints about violations, it has been able to correct them simply by meeting with the customers, she said.

By bumping its alert level, the Vista Irrigation District - which provides water to the city of Vista and portions of San Marcos, Escondido, Oceanside and unincorporated areas of the county - would be acknowledging the "probability" it won't be able to meet customer demand, a district report says.

Under its Stage Two alert, the goal is to slice water use by 10 percent. The alert lists several restrictions, including prohibiting hotels and motels from changing linens for multiple-day customers daily unless requested.

District staff members wouldn't be hunting for violations, but if they're notified of repeat offenders, citations could be issued, said Brett Hodgekiss, an administrative manager with the Irrigation District.

At the moment, however, it's unclear whether the Vista Irrigation District board is ready to move to Stage Two.

"We want to be proactive. … But there's another school of thought that we don't want to lose our credibility by crying wolf," Coox said. "I think the board recognizes there are two schools of thought, and I 'm not sure if a majority of the board is leaning one way or the other."

Board president Howard Williams said Monday that he doesn't expect the Irrigation District to raise the alert level immediately.

"There's no need to stampede on this," Williams said. "We don't know what the rainy season's going to bring yet."

The Irrigation District board is slated to discuss its "water shortage options" at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at district headquarters, 1391 Engineer Street. But the item is likely to be postponed due to a "procedural glitch" in the way it was placed on the agenda, Coox said.

- Contact staff writer Craig TenBroeck at (760) 901-4062 or ctenbroeck@nctimes.com.