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IRRIGATION
RATIONING UNTIL SEPTEMBER 1
RATIONING
REPORT
June was the first month of irrigation rationing and
we thank you for cooperating. It was a very dry month, with only
four rain events, spaced wide apart and for a total of 0.15 inches
of rain. Both last June and June of 2006 were similar, so the
statistics compare well. We used a little over 59 million gallons
of water compared to 52 million in June 2007 and 59 million in 2006
(before rationing). There were seven days with some rain last June,
so the difference can be attributed to the extra days our systems
were turned off. We had 50 less customers on the system in 2006 and
they were not rationing.
There is still about 12% of the population who have
not figured out the program yet. On the other hand, maybe they have
and they have discovered how to circumvent it. I use 40,000 gallons
as a cut off. Two hundred sixty-two customers used over 40,000
gallons, with five using more than 100,000 gallons. It’s easy to
tell who is not complying with the rationing program, or if they
are, they’re flooding their lawns on their 3 days a week. Not only
can we tell by their huge water bills, but a simple look at their
lush, green, immense expanse of bluegrass tells us a lot.
Another reason 40,000 gallons is a good measure is
that even most customers on the ET weather-based controller don’t
use that much. Their systems are designed to provide the optimum
volume of water for the root structure of bluegrass. This past
month they commanded operation almost every day because it was so
dry. Even at that, only three of the 23 residential systems on the
controller used more than 40,000 gallons. More than that is a
waste.
Twelve percent is not bad though. That means 88% are
cooperating. Although we have sent out over 50 warning letters,
several second warnings, and administered a couple of fines, it is
apparent that most customers are in compliance. We thank you.
Please read the article that follows - “Water
Returns Project” for landscaping ideas.
WEATHER BASED ET
CONTROLLER REPORT
We have 23 residential and 3 townhome irrigation ET systems on line.
With June being so dry (0.15 inches of rain), it is no surprise that the
systems did not “save” water. That is not their function. They are
designed to supply the optimum water volume for the bluegrass root
structure, and no more. A by-product of the system is an expected
savings of about 20% over the full season – not during a dry
period. With that said, nine of the accounts did use less water this
June than in June 2006 (before rationing), and the overall average was
only 9% more, even as dry as this June was. We are waiting to get a
full year’s worth of data to complete our analysis of the value of the
controllers.
WATER RETURNS PROJECT
Wow! Check out the landscaping projects most of our water returns
participants have worked on. Some are complete – others just starting –
but all demonstrate some beautiful landscaping that is much more “water
friendly”.
Stop by and ask them about their experiences. They would be happy to
share some tips and ideas.
VANDALISM
Once again, unsupervised teenagers with too much time on their hands
have hit the neighborhood. Last month they lifted a dozen or so of our
traffic cones exposing large pothole size ruts in the road for car tires
to blow in. This month it is graffiti on fire hydrants. If anyone can
identify these perpetrators (even anonymously), we would appreciate it.
Somewhere out there are several orange traffic cones with “Donala”
printed on them, and several used black and white spray paint cans.
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