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Commission Memorandum
Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Commission
From: Lain Leoniak, Water Conservation Specialist Brian Heaston, Project Engineer
Craig Woolard, Director of Public Works
Subject: Water Conservation Program
Meeting Date: May 5, 2014
Agenda Item Type: Action Item
Key Issues and Recommendation: This memo sets the initial course for a new water
conservation program intended to increase and promote efficient use of water within the City of
Bozeman. The initial program implements best practices based on the findings and
recommendations of the IWRP, the Implementation Plan, current literature review, analysis of top conservation programs in the western U.S., and professional judgment. This plan outlines
key program elements from which an effective water conservation program can be built in an
effort to steadily achieve the IWRP’s 50-year water conservation target of 10,100 acre-feet.
The following elements will be developed and implemented in the first year of the water conservation program:
• Education and outreach campaigns;
• Best practices for utility management and City water use;
• Incentive programs.
A FY’15 budget proposal will be presented to the Commission in the coming weeks that funds
activities for the first year of the water conservation program contained herein.
Proposed Motion: Motion for no action needed.
Background:
The IWRP is a proactive long-range plan which resulted from the City’s recognition that
continued growth will occur into the future and eventually exceed the capacity of current water
supplies. The City’s existing water supply sources are finite; thus, new supplies must be
developed to meet projected future needs.
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The Commission’s adoption of the Integrate Water Resources Plan (IWRP), and the IWRP
Implementation Plan, highlights the significant role that water conservation will play in
addressing the City’s long-term water supply needs. A crucial first step in developing the water
conservation program was recently completed with the hiring of a water conservation specialist on March 3, 2014.
A water conservation program steadily implemented to achieve the IWRP’s 50-year water
conservation target of 10,100 acre-feet is the ultimate goal of the city’s long-term water
conservation efforts.
Water Conservation Program
Water Efficiency
Water efficiency is the long term ethic of saving water resources through the use of water‐saving
technologies and practices. Water conservation programs increase water use efficiency by
implementing measures, strategies, and technologies that extend water supplies by either saving
or reusing water. By increasing efficiency, the ability of existing water supplies to serve future demands for new development, provide adequate drought reserves, and potentially augment in-stream flows for environment and recreation purposes is extended. 1
Best Practices and Comparables
While no two water systems are alike and therefore not well suited to uniform approaches in the development of water efficiency programs, the appropriate building blocks for most water
providers include thoughtful planning, application of current and applicable best practices, and
integrated water resources planning.
Water providers in the Western U.S. with well developed and effective water efficiency programs use many different technologies, tools and strategies to achieve overall demand
reductions. The most successful programs combine a mix of voluntary and mandatory
measures.2
A widely recognized first step – and the focus of the City’s program for the first year – is the development and application of recommended voluntary measures outlined below. In order for
voluntary programs to be effective, it is also recommended that they be accompanied and
1 See e.g. Preserving the Customer Conservation Ethic, 2013‐2018 Regional Water Conservation Strategies and
Actions of the Saving Water Partnership, prepared by Seattle Public Utilities Resource Conservation Office,
December 2012, available at:
http://www.savingwater.org/groups/public/@spu/@swp/documents/webcontent/04_009224.pdf. Last visited on:
April 14, 2014; See also, Municipal Water Efficiency Plan Guidance Document, facilitated by, The Colorado Water
Conservation Board, page 5, available at: http://cwcb.state.co.us/technical‐resources/water‐conservation‐plan‐
development‐guide/Documents/FinalWaterEfficiencyGuidanceDocument.pdf. Last visited on: April 18, 2014. 2 E.g. San Antonio Water System, Seattle, Washington Claremont California, Denver, Colorado, Santa Fe, New
Mexico, Ft. Collins, Colorado.
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supported by rigorous promotional efforts and monitoring programs.3 Based upon a review of
best practices for a program at this stage of development, the IWRP, and professional judgment,
no mandatory measures are included. Education, Outreach and Public Engagement
The first priority for the City of Bozeman’s water conservation program is to develop and
implement a robust and varied education, outreach and public engagement program.4
Elements of the first-year program include:
• Relationship building and partnership development: Education programs that focus on
indoor and outdoor efficiencies serve as the initial priority in addition to the development of professional programs in collaboration with local schools and businesses, non-profits, churches, Montana State University and other interested community groups.
o Action: Education and outreach programs focused on residential customers who
fall into a high volume water user category with presentations to home owners’
associations and homeowner participation in community round tables. o Action: Outreach to commercial and institutional stakeholders regarding indoor and outdoor efficiencies.
Educating young people is an investment in both the present and the future. Not only are
students current water users, they bring home important messages to their families and
will become future homeowners. o Action: Educational programs geared toward students developed in collaboration with area administrators, teachers, MSU Watercourse, MSU Extension, MOSS,
Project WET, and others that cover important topics such as where water comes
from and the importance of efficiency and its positive impacts on water quality.
• Customer feedback: Recent studies have found significant value in the frequent
solicitation of customer feedback. As a result, an increasing number of top tier water
efficiency programs are incorporating a consumer information-driven approach.5
This type of customer information serves three very important purposes for the City’s proposed water conservation program. It allows: (i) target communications strategies and
3 Hughes, Sara, Voluntary Environmental Programs in the Public Sector: Evaluating an Urban Water Conservation
Program in California, Policy Studies Journal, Vol. 40 Issue 4, (Nov. 2012). 4 See e.g. Humm, Keen, et. al., High Contact, Hands‐On Engagement Program Changes Customer Behavior, (2010),
available at: http://www.bbcresearch.com/reports/Journal%20AWWA%20Customer%20Engagement.pdf. Last
visited on: April 21, 2014; Public Perceptions, Preferences, and Values for Water in the West: A Survey of Western
and Colorado Residents Page 23, available at: http://www.cwi.colostate.edu/publications/sr/17.pdf. Last visited
on: April 17, 2014. 5 See e.g. Preserving the Customer Conservation Ethic, 2013‐2018 Regional Water Conservation Strategies and
Actions of the Saving Water Partnership, Seattle Public Utilities, December 2012, available at:
http://www.savingwater.org/groups/public/@spu/@swp/documents/webcontent/04_009224.pdf. Last visited
on: April 14, 2014; See also, Public Opinions, Attitudes and Awareness Regarding Water in Colorado, prepared for
the Colorado Water Conservation Board by BBC Research & Consulting, Copy on file with Water Conservation
Specialist.
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resources; (ii) implement suitable educational programs and efficiency measures based on
the responses; and (iii) quantitatively measure the effectiveness of education and
engagement programs.6 o Action: Surveys, whether statistically valid or less formal, to better understand customers’ knowledge, beliefs and behaviors regarding water use.7
• Coordinated and consistent communications campaigns: Effective communications
campaigns must be strategic, clear, consistent, and conveyed using a variety of media. o Action: Develop a communications plan that consistently and effectively delivers broad-based and targeted education and outreach through strategic utilization of
various messaging and media platforms.
Utility Management The City of Bozeman should model best practices. If consumers are being asked to conserve
water in and around their homes and businesses, the City should lead the way. Moreover, system
efficiency programs aimed at the City can result in significant water savings.
The second priority for the water conservation program in year one is to expand upon existing system water loss control practices. It is a direct means in which the City can set a powerful
example and offer water and cost savings.8
Elements of the first-year program include:
• System assessments: Audits of the water distribution systems and City facilities. An
indoor facilities audit is currently in progress.
o Action: An audit of the City’s parkland and irrigation systems.
• Infrastructure maintenance, leak detection and repair: The City of Bozeman currently
engages in an on-going meter exchange program and an aggressive leak detection and
repair program that improves efficiency system-wide. o Action: To support the existing meter exchange and leak detection programs.
• IWRP Supply and Demand Profiles: The supply and demand profiles were completed as
part of the IWRP process and included projections as to when and under what
circumstances demand would exceed supply. The demand profile identified customer categories, water use within each and seasonal usage patterns.
o Action: To apply this essential foundational information in order to advance the
other elements of the water conservation program outlined herein.
6 See generally, Silva et. al., Water Conservation: Customer Behavior and Effective Communications, page 126,
(2010), available at: http://www.waterrf.org/PublicReportLibrary/4012.pdf. Last visited on: April 18, 2014; See
also, Public Opinions, Attitudes and Awareness Regarding Water in Colorado. 7 Silva et. al., Water Conservation, (2010). 8 E.g. Guidebook of Best Practices for Municipal Water Conservation in Colorado, prepared by Colorado WaterWise
(2010).
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• Demand Tracking Tool: The development of a demand tracking tool enables the City to
evaluate its current water supply against current water demand, measure the efficacy of
specific measures as well as the overall health of the water efficiency program and provide information that will guide future activities and communications campaigns. o Action: Develop a demand tracking tool to account for water uses across customer
classes and measure individual conservation measure effectiveness as well as
overall conservation program savings.
• Integrated Water Resources Planning: Supply, conservation, drought and stormwater
management planning are interrelated.
o Action: Develop a drought management plan and integrate the water conservation
program with drought, stormwater and water supply and reliability planning.
• Water Conservation Program Evaluation: Periodic evaluation of the water conservation
program is essential for continued program success in increasing water use efficiency.
o Action: Evaluate and adapt water conservation program annually and report to
Commission on program effectiveness.
Incentive and Pilot Projects
Residential outdoor irrigation comprises a significant portion of overall water demand for the
City of Bozeman and can be responsible for the peak day demands during hot summer months that can be one and one half to three times that of average day winter demands. The education
and engagement, city water use assessments, and incentive and other voluntary programs
identified herein are, in part, geared toward reducing peak day demands and increasing available
supplies during the summer months.
Elements of the first-year program include:
• Outdoor Residential Incentive Programs: Outdoor incentive programs can contribute to
reducing peak day demand. o Action: Incentivize smart irrigation controllers (e.g. soil moisture sensors).
• Indoor Residential Incentive Programs: Indoor residential use accounts for approximately
forty percent of total residential use in the City of Bozeman and is primarily used for
cleaning and sanitation.9 Toilets and clothes washers account for approximately twenty-six percent and twenty two percent of the City’s indoor residential uses respectively.10
o Action: Expand the existing residential toilet rebate program. The City
implemented a successful residential toilet rebate program in 2008 that continues
to generate water savings. The initial focus of the program continues to target single and multi-family residences.
o Action: Develop and implement a residential clothes washer rebate program.
9 IWRP Technical memorandum page 11. 10 Id. At page 15.
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• Commercial and Institutional Incentive Programs: Commercial and institutional users of
water include a wide range of businesses and organizations. Facilities such as schools,
(including MSU), hotels, retail stores, office buildings, and hospitals account for up to thirty seven percent of publicly-supplied water use in the City of Bozeman.11 o Action: Develop indoor incentive program that targets toilets and clothes washers
for commercial and institutional customers.
Benefits of an Effective Water Conservation Program While the water supply and demand profiles set forth in the IWRP clearly indicates that water
conservation will not create sufficient additional supplies to address the anticipated water
balance gap in its entirety, a reduction in water demands as a result of increased water efficiency
can result in the following benefits:
• Avoids, downsizes, or postpones the construction and operation of water supply facilities;
• Eliminates, reduces, or postpones water purchases;
• Indoor water savings reduce wastewater discharges, which improves water quality and aquatic habitat;
• Outdoor water savings reduces discharges to storm water drains which also improves
water quality;
• Demonstrates the City’s commitment to sustainability;
• Meets political and regulatory requirements for future water supply projects;
• Demonstrates leadership to the community;
• Provides some insurance in times of water shortages; 12
• Costs less than acquiring new supplies to allow for future growth and result in fewer
impacts to the environment;13
• Conserved water that is stored and saved can be used during drought as part of a drought management plan thereby improving the reliability of the water supply.
Alternatives: As suggested by the Commission.
Fiscal Effects: The Water Conservation Program budget will be developed based on the conservation program as described herein.
Attachments: None.
11 IWRP Technical Memorandum, page 11. 12 See e.g. Water Conservation Plan, City of Ft. Collins, (2009). Copy on file with Water Conservation Specialist. 13 IWRP Table 9 Capital Cost Basis.
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