ITEM:

INFORMATIONAL ITEMS/STAFF REPORTS

 

23.

WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAM REPORT

 

Meeting Date:

 July 21, 2008

Budgeted: 

N/A

 

From:

 Darby Fuerst,

Program/

N/A

 

 General Manager

Line Item No.:

 

 

 

Prepared By:

 

Michael Boles

Cost Estimate:

N/A

General Counsel Approval:

N/A

Committee Recommendation:

N/A

CEQA Compliance:

Exempt

 

 

I.      MANDATORY WATER CONSERVATION RETROFIT PROGRAM

 

The District continued to carry out District Regulation XIV, which requires the retrofit of water fixtures to ultra-low flow (ULF) 1.6 gallons-per-flush toilets and 2.5 gallons-per-minute showerheads when properties transfer ownership.  Property owners are required to certify the property has the ULF fixtures by submitting a Water Conservation Certification form (WCC). 

 

A.    Certification

The District received 84 WCC forms between June 1, 2008 and June 30, 2008.  Data on property ownership, transfer date, and status of conservation requirements from those forms were entered into the conservation database.

 

B.    Verification

In the month of June, 145 inspections were performed in response to request from property owners.  The District completed 50 inspections of properties changing ownership and 41 (82%) were in compliance.  None of the properties that passed inspection required more than one visit to verify compliance with all conservation requirements.  The District also verified the replacement of 4 toilets resulting from water permit conditions of approval.

 

C.    Changes of Ownership

Information is obtained weekly from the RealQuest.Com on properties transferring ownership within the District.  The information is entered into the database and compared against the properties that have submitted WCCs. Properties not in compliance with District law are then identified.  Information on 130 property transfers that occurred in the month of June was entered into the database.  

 

  1. Savings Estimate

Water savings from retrofits (triggered by changes in ownership) verified in June are estimated at 0.023 acre-feet.   Year-to-date total estimated savings is 3.335 acre-feet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. Water Waste Response

There were five water waste complaints reported by the public, and staff made several verbal contacts in the field after observing water wasting actions.  A letter was sent as a follow up to the water waste.

 

 

  1. Promote Public Awareness

On or before October 1, 1997, all Visitor-serving and Public and Quasi-Public Facilites shall display in visible locations in all restrooms, kitchens, and dining areas, placards or decals approved by the District promoting public awareness of the need for water conservation and/or advising the public that waste of water is prohibited.  District staff are contacting and distributing to business owners of restaurants, bars and hotels and motels, placards promoting water conservation. Since March 17, 2008 District staff in conjunction with CAW staff has placed 3,018 Linen Placards, 3,400 Towel Placards and 3,103 “Water on Demand” Water Placards.

 

 

 

II.              WATER DEMAND MANAGEMENT

 

A.    Permit Processing

District staff processed and issued 117 water permits in the month of June.  Five permits were issued to other entitlements (Macomber, Pebble Beach Company, Griffin Estates, Quail Meadows, etc).  The remainder of the permits issued did not involve a debit to a jurisdiction’s allocation or were debited from a public water allocation.  District Rule 23 requires a water permit application for all properties that propose to expand water demand on a site, including new construction and remodels.

 

District Rule 24-3-A allows the addition of a second bathroom to an existing single family dwelling on a single-family residential site. Of the 117 water permits issued in June, six were issued under this provision.

 

B.    Permit Compliance

District staff completed 87 water permit final inspections in June. Thirty three of the final inspections failed due to unpermitted fixtures or for not having low-flow fixtures in place as required by the permit. Of the 54 properties that were in compliance, 54 passed on the first visit. In addition, 8 properties required pre-inspections in response to Water Permit Applications received by the District.

 

C.    Deed Restrictions

District staff prepares documents that are recorded on the property title to enforce District Rules and Regulations, enforce permit conditions and allow public access to water records.  In March 2001, the District Board of Directors adopted a policy regarding the processing of these documents.  Specifically, an extensive quality control process was put into place and the District is now responsible for thoroughly reviewing and recording these documents.  In the month of June, the District prepared 36 documents.  Of the 117 permits that were issued in June, 30 (26%) required deed restrictions.  District staff provided deed restriction Notary services for 41 water permit applicants.       

 

III.            REBATE PROGRAM

 

In January 1997, the District enacted a program that offered refunds of up to $100 for every older residential toilet replaced with an ultra-low flow model.  The program was expanded in 1998 to provide rebates for voluntary non-residential toilet retrofits.  It was expanded again in 2003 to provide rebates for ultra-low consumption appliances and cisterns.  In September 2007, the refund amount for water savings appliances was increased from $100 to $150 for High Efficiency Toilets, point of source on demand hot water, and 28 gallon washing machines; $125 for ultra water saving dishwashers and $200 for 18 gallon washing machines and instant access hot water systems. Water saved through this program is set aside to reduce community water use.

 

 

 

Participation in the rebate program is detailed in the following chart:

 

 

 

 

REBATE PROGRAM SUMMARY

June-2008

2008 YTD Total

Total-to-Date (January 1997 - Present)

I

Application Summary

 

 

 

 

 

A.

Applications Received

77

530

6777

 

B.

Applications Approved

50

383

5339

 

C.

Single Family Applications

75

515

6189

 

D.

Multi-Family Applications

0

8

428

 

E.

Non-Residential Applications

2

7

133

II

Types of Fixtures Rebated

Total Per Item

 

 

 

A.

Single Family Toilet

10

944.00

71

4790

 

B.

SFD-HET

7

1,100.00

52

219

 

C.

Multi-Family Toilet

0

0.00

9

1885

 

D.

Non-Residential - Toilet

1

100.00

9

709

 

E.

Non-Residential - HET

0

0.00

2

27

 

F.

SFD ULF Dishwasher

12

1,500.00

91

478

 

G.

Non-Residential ULF Washing Machine

0

0.00

1

587

 

G.

SFD ULF 18-gallon Washing Machine

24

4,800.00

132

718

 

H.

SFD ULF 28-gallon Washing Machine

2

300.00

4

4

 

I.

Smart Controllers

0

0.00

0

2

 

J.

Zero Water Using Urinals

40

8,000.00

40

112

 

K.

Instant Access Hot Water Systems

1

100.00

14

30

 

L.

Cisterns

0

0.00

1

8

III

Total Dollars Rebated

 

$16,844.00

$79,483.94

$965,187.97

IV

Estimated Water Savings in Acre-Feet Annually*

0.889

 

7.030

198.281

* Retrofit savings are estimated at 0.023 AF/toilet, 0.003 AF/dishwasher, 0.015 AF washer; 0.03 AF.HET

 

 

 

 

 

 

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