1. Water Conservation Regulations: Guide or Be Guided
Urban Water Institute
August 25, 2016
Andree Johnson

2. What is BAWSCA? Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency
Special District representing the interests of
26 cities, water districts and water companies in San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Alameda Counties
1.7 million residents
All rely on the San Francisco Regional Water System
Conservation efforts have resulted in 25% decrease in water use despite a 27% population increase since 1986

3. Before the Regulations: Initial Drought Challenges
Governor declared statewide drought emergency in January 2014
SFPUC issued a request for 10% reduction in water use from its retail and wholesale customers
Regional water use was already near historic lows
Some members facing more significant shortages
State Water Project supplies
Santa Clara Valley Water District
Up to $125 High- Efficiency Toilet Rebates

4. Regional Media Campaign Drove Water Use Reductions

5. State Regulations and Local Response
April 2015 Executive Order and subsequent SWRCB Regs increased need for conservation efforts
BAWSCA agencies were meeting local savings targets prior to State actions
Media attention to drought immediately following Executive Order further reduced water use
State actions superseded local drought contingency planning
Drought Allocation Plan
Local Water Shortage Contingency Plans

6. Combined BAWSCA Service Area Savings Target Was 15%
BAWSCA member agencies were spread throughout the nine “Conservation Standards” 8%
CalWater (SSF)
East Palo Alto
San Bruno
Daly City
North Coast Westborough Coastside
Hayward
Redwood City
12%
Estero MID
Milpitas
16%
Burlingame
Mountain View Sunnyvale
CalWater (MP)
ACWD
Santa Clara
Menlo Park
Millbrae
20%
San Jose
Mid‐Pen WD
24%
Palo Alto
36%
CalWater (BG)
Hillsborough
78% of water use

7. Regional Actions to Assist in Meeting Water Use Targets
Public information campaign focused on specific actions
Outdoor water use was the prime target
Common irrigation schedule
“Lawn Be Gone”
Accelerated conservation programs
Updated Model Landscape Ordinance

8. Retail Agencies Drought Response Strategies Varied
Range of actions included:
Public Information Programs
Accelerated Conservation Programs
Home Water Reports
Landscape Water Budgets
Residential Water Budgets
Standardized Water Shortage Contingency Plans were considered but not feasible due to regional diversity

9. BAWSCA Agencies Achieved 27% Savings Over Course of Year

10. Water Use Reached New Lows
Eight BAWSCA agencies had per capita use of less than 50 gpcd in FY

11. ..With Visible Results

12. Conservation Continues in Absence of State Targets
Most BAWSCA agencies have 0% mandatory conservation standards
SFPUC is asking for 10% voluntary cutbacks
Agencies going to Stage 1 of their Water Shortage Contingency Plans
Increased number of watering days per week to 3
Water use remains well below target

13. Lessons Learned
Long-term water management efforts left us well-prepared for this drought
The public responded to calls for conservation
All agencies met their targets – in many different ways
Room for improvement in aligning local and State drought response efforts
Long-term efficiency standards should recognize local water supply development efforts
Our potential for reducing water use is greater than we thought

14. Moving Forward: From Conservation to Efficiency
Future conservation regulations must consider the distinction between conservation and efficiency
Difference is clear when we look at water use in past droughts
This graph shows BAWSCA’s residential per capita water use for the past 40 years. The shaded areas represent drought periods where calls for conservation were in effect.
-Looking at the 2 major drought, there is a large drop in per capita water use- followed by a slow recovery
-About 20% of the water use reductions achieved during droughts have stayed – these are the changes due to water use efficiency, such as replacing fictures
-The other 80% of water use rebounded within 5 years.
Implications for a new statewide conservation program:
-We cannot be fooled into thinking current water use levels are a “new normal”
-While we need to