Conservation saves water and money

Last year's wet spring may have saved Salt Lake City residents some water.

In 2005, the city used 96 percent of the water it used in 2004, or nearly 4,000 acre feet less — enough water to last 7,700 people a year.

That conservation in 2005 will pay off for residents in the long run because they won't have to pay for pricey projects like a pipeline from Lake Powell or a dam on the Bear River, said Stephanie Duer, a conservation specialist for the Salt Lake utilities department.

"Short term, there's some pennies that cost us, but the long-term is (saving) big dollars," Duer said. "That's what conservation gets us."

The public utilities department didn't have to buy that extra 4,000 acre feet of water from its wholesalers, which would have cost around $652,000. However, it also missed the revenue that would have come from doling out those acre feet to residents. About 85 percent of the utilities department's costs are fixed, so a hit to its revenue can hit hard, said Jeff Niermeyer, the department's deputy director.

"The real advantage of conservation is that you can avoid spending a lot of dollars in the future to bring in extra supplies, which would be quite expensive," Niermeyer said. "If we hadn't done the conservation when we got to the drought . . . we literally would have run out of water."

It's not clear to Niermeyer whether the conservation message or spring rains and runoff had the greater impact on water use. Either way, though, he's pleased that the city came in below its goal for water usage.

"All those little messages about turning off the water while you're brushing your teeth are getting to somebody," Niermeyer said.

Overall, Salt Lake residents are consuming far less water than they used in 2000, the first year the department started keeping detailed daily records about water use. In 2000, the city's water consumption peaked in late July or early August at above 210 million gallons per day; for the same time period in 2005, consumption topped out between 160 and 170 million gallons per day. The lowest water consumption months are November through April — times of the year when residents aren't watering lawns or washing cars in their yards.

When Duer watched the water consumption numbers during rain storms a few years ago, major storms barely affected use. These days, though, the message of permanent conservation shows up during sprinkles.

"Now when a rain event happens, the impact lasts longer and is much more deeply felt," Duer said. "People are learning how to make better choices about how to use water in their landscapes. When we have a wet spring we need to learn to expect that we're not going to sell as much water and that's how it should be."

---

E-mail: kswinyard@desnews.com