Water conservation
Water Conservation Cost-Share Program
Section I: Background
The mission of the St. Johns River Water Management District (District) is to “ensure the sustainable use and protection of water resources for the benefit of the people of the District and the state of Florida.” In support of this mission, the District develops and implements strategies that help provide sufficient water resources for users and the environment.
Conserving water resources is not only vital to help meet future water supply needs, it is the right thing to do. To accomplish this, the District is seeking participation from stakeholders who play key roles in promoting resource conservation through new methods, technology and enforcement of landscape irrigation ordinances and related education efforts. The District’s Water Conservation Cost-Share Program will help demonstrate new concepts in the development and execution of water conservation projects.
Water conservation is not new to the District. The District has promoted and helped implement a wide range of water conservation programs in agriculture, industry, education and the environment. However, today there are many new methods and emerging technologies that offer significant savings, but these remain untested in an actual field application and must, therefore, be field-verified. Additionally, a number of utilities have implemented or may be planning the implementation of a range of conservation alternatives, but lack the ability to monitor, collect, analyze and report actual water savings. Lastly, many potentially viable water conservation projects are being deferred or not pursued, due to insufficient funding and/or meaningful incentives.
The projects supported by the Water Conservation Cost-Share Program will include the introduction and use of performance metrics, reliability, conservation education, and other measures for self-management by participating utilities. Going forward, self-management by local utilities, such as including account-level billing and consumption data, equipment maintenance, and inventory control systems, will become critical components of future conservation initiatives.
The program will seek to identify new methods for using water efficiently within local utilities and the District. The goal is to implement conservation measures that reduce consumption prior to the need to tap new sources. It will specifically encourage the reduction of water use among those user groups with the highest consumption.
As new water conservation concepts and technologies are introduced, it is important that all endeavors of this nature support three areas of critical concern. These include people (staff), equipment, and the process used (software) — all of which are necessary for the implementation of any plan. How well these are addressed will determine the success of the program. The information that follows provides an overview of the program, potential projects, and the process to be followed during implementation.
This program includes five types of projects:
- Reliability and performance testing of new landscape irrigation technology
- Automated tracking of historical customer consumption data
- Reliability and performance testing of new high-efficiency indoor fixtures
- Enforcement of landscape irrigation ordinances and related education efforts
- Other (new and innovative technology and practices)
More information is available on the Project Descriptions Web page.
Benefits summary:
The chart below helps to illustrate the additional benefits of the five types of projects, as well as the additional water savings.
Potential benefits to utilities and end users |
Projects |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
|
1. Reduced damage to sidewalks, driveways, and curbs |
Y |
|
|
|
1 or more |
2. Reduced energy costs |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
|
3. Infrastructure cost-avoidance (including new water supplies) |
Y |
Y |
|
Y |
|
4. Reduced maintenance costs |
Y |
Y |
Y |
|
|
5. Sewer charges (winter averaging) |
Y |
|
Y |
|
|
6. Safety |
Y |
|
|
|
|
7. Real estate curb appeal/resale value |
Y |
Y |
Y |
|
|
8. Landscape replacement and maintenance |
Y |
|
|
Y |
|
9. Water conservation program justification by utilities |
Y |
Y |
|
|
|
10. It is just good business! |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
|
11. Compliance with consumptive use permit conditions |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
|
12. Reductions in sewer flows and subsequent operating expenses |
|
Y |
Y |
|
|
Section II: Available funds and distribution guidelines
No maximum award value has been set for individual projects. Projects are eligible to receive up to a 50 percent cost-share on the basis of a negotiated, performance-based contract and a commitment to continuous monitoring of equipment and project performance metrics. Funds administered through this program will be reimbursed on a quarterly basis after the project components have been completed and paid for by the cost-sharing recipient.
All local government recipients shall assist in water conservation efforts by adopting and actively enforcing a landscape irrigation ordinance that fully implements the landscape irrigation provisions in District Rule 40C-2.042(2), Florida Administrative Code, and which does not in any other manner regulate the consumptive use of water. If recipient local government does not already have such an ordinance in place, an ordinance shall be adopted within 180 days of the effective date of an agreement to implement a project within this program; provided, however, that this date may be extended by the District upon a showing of good cause, within the District’s sole discretion and judgment. If the recipient is not a local government, it shall actively support and encourage enactment by all local governments within its service area a landscape irrigation ordinance that fully implements the landscape irrigation provisions in District Rule 40C-2.042(2), Florida Administrative Code, and which does not in any other manner regulate the consumptive use of water. To ensure that said ordinance meets the requirements of this paragraph, the recipient shall submit the draft ordinance to the District’s project manager not less than 30 days prior to the first reading of the ordinance, with a copy to the District’s governmental affairs manager, Kraig McLane, kmclane@sjrwmd.com, Office of Communications and Governmental Affairs, 4049 Reid Street, Palatka, FL 32177-2529.
Section III: Instructions for completing applications
- Complete the entire application. Do not leave parts of the application form blank, even if it is necessary to refer to attachments for additional detail. Be sure to attach all supporting materials. The application form must be complete and must include sufficient supporting information to assess the project. Do not assume reviewers are knowledgeable of practices, issues, or factors involved with your type of project. Refer to appendixes A to D for use as a guideline.
- Follow additional instructions given in the application form.
- Deliver your application. Applications must be received by the District or dated by the U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier no later than July 2, 2010, and delivered to St. Johns River Water Management District, 4049 Reid Street, Palatka, FL 32177-2529, to the attention of John Wester, or delivered via e-mail in the required Adobe PDF format to jwester@sjrwmd.com.
- Project budget summary. Provide a one-page project budget by task summary and date, listing project expenses as they are expected to be incurred given the estimated timeline.
- General specifications and plans. Submit project graphics, preferably geographic information system (GIS)-based, with enough detail that District staff will understand what is to be implemented, demonstrated or installed and a one-page summary of equipment and materials of the project. All images shall be in an 8½- by 11-inch format.
- Location map. Clearly indicate the location and extent of the project and whether it crosses water management district jurisdictions. Use an 8½- by 11-inch format. Show highway intersections or other recognizable landmarks for orientation.
Optional pre-submittal completeness review: Applicants are encouraged to contact Project Manager John Wester at jwester@sjrwmd.com or (386) 329-4457 for an optional, pre-submittal completeness review of the completed application before the submission deadline.
The St. Johns River Water Management District reserves the right, at its
sole discretion, to reject any and all applications received, without penalty.
