As drought worsens, task force members slam Austin water conservation plan as ‘meager’

Members of the City of Austin’s Water Planning Task Force will hold a special meeting Thursday to address concerns that the new Austin Water Conservation Plan is not ambitious.

The utility’s proposed conservation and drought response policies drew criticism when they were released on April 15, just weeks before Austin Water hopes to win City Council approval for the plan.

The plan sets out rules for how the city will manage the limited water supply stored in Lake Highlands Reservoir. Under state law, the plan must be updated every five years.

The conservation plan sets year-round goals and policies to reduce water consumption and waste regardless of weather conditions. During periods of drought, drought contingency plans are implemented. It sets triggers for Austin to declare different phases of a state of emergency and sets water restrictions based on which phase the city is in.

Both proposals were reviewed at the April 15 meeting of the Austin Comprehensive Water Planning Community Working Group. The task force is a group of volunteers, many with expertise on water issues, appointed by the city council to advise on water policy.

Goal ‘not ambitious’

Over the past five years, Austin residents have used an average of 64 gallons of water per person per day. The utility’s new conservation plan aims to reduce average water use by 2 gallons per person per day to 62 gallons by 2029.

Taking into account industrial and commercial uses, Autinites use 127 gallons of water per capita per day. Under the new conservation plan, Austin Water aims to reduce water use by 4 gallons per day to 123 gallons per day by 2029.

Outside of residential and commercial uses, Austin loses approximately 21 gallons of water every day due to leaks in its water treatment and distribution systems. The new plan’s goal is to reduce leaks to 19 gallons per person per day by 2029.

Utility officials say water savings can be achieved by increasing water reuse, plugging more leaks in the system and encouraging year-round conservation through education and incentive programs.

But the conservation goals were quickly criticized by task force members, who noted that Austin Waters’ new plan sets conservation goals that are less ambitious than those currently on the books.

Under the most recent savings plan approved in 2019, the utility had hoped to achieve residential water use of 61 gallons per day and total water use of 119 gallons per day.

“I think these goals are very meager,” said task force member Bill Moriarty, an engineer and former manager of the Austin Clean Water Project.

Sara Faust, a water and environmental law attorney and a member of the task force, said they are not ambitious.

Austin Water officials say the goals are more realistic than previous goals.

“These goals…are aspirational, but we think we can achieve them,” said Kevin Kluge, Austin Water’s water conservation manager.

further concerns

In addition to expressing shock at the savings targets, some task force members criticized the way the utility rolled out the program and suggested it should require more savings from industrial or commercial customers.

Tesla, for example, has become one of Austin’s top five retail water customers since arriving in Austin a few years ago and is scheduled to consume approximately 3.3 billion gallons of water by 2023.

Task force member Paul DiFiore said Tesla uses 7% of all our water sales. I feel like this needs to be part of this conversation.

The new plan was initially scheduled to be released in February or March, but was not released until the morning of the April 15 task force hearing.

Austin Water officials said the delays were due to city chain of command issues and the need to wait for the Lower Colorado River Authority, which receives water from Austin, to formally develop its own conservation and drought policies.

The utility now hopes the plan can be quickly brought to City Council for approval.But members of the working group said The timing does not provide an opportunity for the public to review the plans.

Traditionally, new city policies take time to be heard by the various city boards and commissions appointed by the City Council.

While the support of these groups is not required for parliamentary approval of these policies, the process should ensure that the proposals have undergone public scrutiny before being put to a parliamentary vote.

“I think it’s a weird launch,” Moriarty said.

The new plan fared better later this week at a meeting of the city’s water and wastewater committee, which supported bringing it to council for a final vote.

Drought may intensify

Austin has been under Stage 2 drought restrictions since August and could slip further into Stage 3 drought restrictions by July as the Lake Highlands reservoir is currently 42% full without significant rainfall.

Under the new proposals, drought restrictions from Stage 2 to Stage 3 will mean sports fields will need to apply for irrigation permits, people will need to further limit the time they can water their lawns, and those who breach watering regulations will be punished with immediate fines, not just councils. warning.

Austin has been working to improve water conservation recently, with water use continuing unabated after the city announced new restrictions last summer.

These facts, coupled with explosive growth in population and commerce in the region, make discussions about water conservation and drought response even more urgent.

This is one of the biggest issues facing our community right now. “We are in the midst of a severe drought,” Foster told Austin Water officials.rush [the plans to council] It’s really hard to understand without valid opinions and discussions like this.

But Austin Water says the company is operating under administrative pressure.

The utility said it needs to finalize the new plan before city councilors take their summer break in June. Utility officials hope to have the plan approved by May 2.

Ahead of the vote, Austin Water agreed to meet again with task force members Thursday at the city’s Permit and Development Center from 1 to 3 p.m.