Agenda - 05-05-2009 - 4l - Laserfiche WebLink

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18 OWASA'S REVISED WATER CONSERVATION STANDARDS March 26, 2009 Baclosround On March 26, 2009 the OWASA Board of Directors approved revisions to OWASA's Water Conservation Standards which apply to water use by a]I OWASA customers. The Standards were originally developed in 2003 and subsequently incorporated into the local water conservation ordinances of Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Orange County. The revised Standards, which, reflect the "lessons learned" from the drought of 2007-2008, will go into effect as soon as the three local governing boards approve revised water conservation ordinances that incorporate the new Standards. This document provides an overview of (1) the general principles that have guided OWASA's efforts to revise the Standards and (2) key changes to the Standards. The revised Standards were developed with input from local governments, businesses, and OWASA customers during and following the 2007-2008 drought. OWASA distributed proposed Standards revisions for public review and comment and hosted a community meeting on September 24, 2008 that had been publicized through new releases, paid newspaper advertising, and a-mail messages to more than l ,000 recipients. On February .25 and March 10, 2009, the OWASA Board met with local elected officials to present and discuss the proposed revisions. Based on the positive feedback received from the public and local elected officials, the OWASA Board has approved the revised Standards and formally requested that the Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Orange County governing boards revise their respective local water conservation ordinances to incorporate the new Standards. Guiding Principles In developing the revised Standards, OWASA was guided by the following principles and "lessons learned" during the 2007-2008 drought: • The original. set of Standards focused predominantly on outdoor water use, which represents only about 7 percent of OWASA's tote.] annual demand. By comparison, other utilities estimate that outdoor use accounts for 20 percent of their total water use, which reflects significant differences between OWASA's and their customer bases. • Significant reductions in OWASA water demand persisted through the winter months of late 2007 and early 2008 when little or no outdoor use was taking place, indicating that substantial indoor reductions had occurred and were being sustained in the absence of any indoor regulatory requirements. These behavioral changes were likely a response to several factors, including OWASA's Stage 2 and 3 water rate surcharges; the community's longstanding commitment to sustaining its drinking water resources; OWASA's public information work; and extensive media coverage of the drought and uncertain regional water supply conditions.