To: Members of the Castle Rock Water Commission
From: Mark Marlowe, P.E., Director of Castle Rock Water
Matt Benak, P.E., Water Resources Manager
Rick Schultz, Water Efficiency Supervisor
Title
A Resolution Approving the 2023 Water Use Management Plan (WUMP)
Town Council Agenda Date: March 7, 2023
Body
________________________________________________________________________________
Executive Summary
The purpose of this memorandum is to request Town Council approval of a Resolution (Attachment A) adopting the 2023 Water Use Management Plan (WUMP). The WUMP is a demand management tool that identifies regulations, watering schedules to stagger demand, surcharges, and enforcement to control peak irrigation season demands and ensure the efficient and wise use of water year round. The WUMP is referenced in Municipal Code 13.15.040 and 13.15.050. There are no substantial content changes proposed. Minor administrative updates are proposed to the 2023 WUMP (Exhibit 1), and those are summarized in Attachment B.
Notification and Outreach Efforts
As defined in Chapter 13.15 of the Town’s Municipal Code, all customers will receive the 2023 watering schedule via United States Mail within thirty (30) days prior to the commencement of the outdoor watering schedule implementation period (May through September). Additionally, this information will be available on the Town’s websites (CRgov.com and CRconserve.com) and promoted through Community Relations’ outreach avenues, such as Facebook, Twitter, Town Talk, and press releases.
Discussion
The WUMP focuses on two areas critical to water use management including public education on how demand management works and impacts each customer and implementation of the actual demand management tools including watering schedules, enforcement, and other tools. The public education component has multiple opportunities for water conservation guidance. While Castle Rock Water employs a wide range of tools for public education on efficient water use and conservation, the primary tool for educating customers on demand management is the Water Wiser workshop. Successful completion of the workshop exempts a customer from the watering schedule (i.e. meaning they can water on any day necessary), but it does not exempt them from the restrictions on time of day or water waste.
Public education through the Water Wiser workshop has been very successful. In 2022, 309 new customers attended the workshop, another 112 customers renewed their Water Wiser designation online, and currently 3,507 customers are Water Wiser participants. Since 2018, customers are required to renew their participation every five years to stay current with the advancing conservation techniques and equipment. Renewals can be completed by taking an online course or retaking the in-person course. The ultimate goal is to get as many customers as possible to become Water Wiser. The chart below shows the trend in Water Wiser participants over the last five years.
|
Water Wiser Participants |
|
2017 |
3,020 |
|
2018 |
3,993 |
|
2019 |
3,187 |
|
2020 |
3,316 |
|
2021 |
3,497 |
|
2022 |
3,507 |
The Town of Castle Rock has used mandatory water demand management for landscape irrigation since 1985. Peak season demands for residential customers are staggered on an every-third-day format. This is the traditional circle, diamond, square watering schedule familiar to our customers. Consistent with the program adopted in 2019, the schedule period will remain May through September. Other than hand watering, no watering during the daytime hours of 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. is allowed. This format helps ensure our customers use irrigation water when it is most efficient and effective, ultimately saving customers money. In addition, it allows positive pressures and adequate fire flows to be maintained throughout the water distribution system. It also allocates time for the finished water storage tanks to recover volume.
For non-residential customers, the watering schedule is three days per week. Customers east of I-25 are designated Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Customers west of I-25 can water on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Non-residential watering hours begin at 12 a.m. and must be completed by 8 a.m. on the designated day.
In order to accommodate park use and programmed activities, Town owned and managed parks can begin watering at 9:00 p.m. on their designated day and finish no later than 5 a.m. the following morning.
In addition to the watering schedules, the WUMP covers alternative schedules for customers with hardships that make complying with the standard schedules impossible and temporary irrigation exemptions from the standard schedules for things like establishing new plant material. Other items covered in the WUMP include special circumstances impacting compliance, rules for other types of water use besides irrigation, definitions of water waste, and monitoring and enforcement.
Monitoring and enforcement is a key item in the WUMP. This section covers surcharges for violations, a key item of importance to customers. No changes are proposed to the surcharges for violations. The surcharges for 2023 are shown in the table below.
|
Residential |
Non-residential |
|
1st - Warning, no surcharge |
1st - Warning, no surcharge |
|
2nd - $25 surcharge |
2nd - $100 surcharge* |
|
3rd - $50 surcharge |
3rd - $200 surcharge* |
|
4th - $100 surcharge |
4th - $400 surcharge* |
|
5th - $200 surcharge |
5th - $800 surcharge* |
|
Subsequent - $200 surcharge* |
Subsequent - $800 surcharge* |
|
*Subject to service discontinuance |
*Subject to service discontinuance |
The philosophy and focus of the watering schedule program is to educate customers and avoid issuing surcharges for violations. While the water monitors have always issued violations, their direction is to contact the customer, explain the problem, and provide a solution whenever reasonable and possible.
The total number of violations issued each year is variable, and there is no clear trend up or down. The largest factor influencing the quantity of violations is the number of monitors hired during any given season. More monitors hired means we get more thorough coverage of the town and this has typically translated into more violations observed/issued. From a revenue perspective, even though the numbers of residential violations consistently exceed those of non-residential violations, the largest percentage of revenue comes from the non-residential violations. One final detail worth noting, 2018 was the last year we had a 3-month restriction season. In 2019 we added April and September and have maintained that 5-month season ever since. For a more in depth look, see the Watering Violations Summary, Attachment C.
Revenues from violation surcharges are used to help cover the operating costs of the monitoring program and the conservation rebate program.
Seasonal water conservation staff will continue to be hired each year to help monitor and enforce the WUMP. The Town continues to grow and as a result so does Castle Rock Water’s service area. While located in the County, not within the Town of Castle Rock, the Macanta neighborhood along Crowfoot Valley Road has added many new homes, and continues to grow. Also new for 2023 is the Bell Mountain Ranch neighborhood. Castle Rock Water is planning six seasonal water monitors for 2023.
The full WUMP can be found at CRgov.com/waterplans <https://crgov.com/2323/Plans>
Budget Impact
The budget for 2023 seasonal water conservation staff is $56,014, and is covered under account number 211-4330-443.10-30. The revenue budget estimate for watering surcharges is $85,000. With the transition of the seasonal office assistant out of this fund, the seasonal water conservation salaries are not expected to exceed the budget amount even with six seasonal staff.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends approval of the 2023 WUMP as presented.
Proposed Motion
“I move to recommend to Town Council approval of the Resolution as presented”
Attachments
Attachment A: Resolution (Not Attached)
Exhibit 1: 2023 WUMP
Attachment B: Summary of proposed changes
Attachment C: Watering violations summary