Recently in Ecosystem Category

In the face of fast growing populations, straining infrastructure, increasing regulation, and long-term drought conditions, water agencies across the country are challenged to deliver a reliable, high quality water supply to their customers. The pressure is not likely to ease.

Based on a survey of state water departments, the U.S. General Accounting Office concluded that 36 states will have “water shortages in average rainfall years by 2010.”



Grappling with other water-related issues, many agencies have decided to delay conservation projects until the public perceives a critical shortage.

According to WeatherTRAK, who draws on years of experience in designing and implementing landscape conservation programs, some agencies face political barriers or consumer resistance to saving water. Past conservation programs have produced largely disappointing results, causing enthusiasm to dwindle.

SUCCESS STORY:  25% Savings

The widespread implementation of low-flow plumbing devices has saved significant amounts of water in the past decade. In Los Angeles, California, the powerful combination of a federal code requiring low-flow plumbing devices in new developments and rebates for installing these devices in homes and commercial sites has reduced water demand by twenty-five percent.

New Conservation Efforts Transitioning from the Indoors to the Outdoors

Water agencies must ensure that their water infrastructure can satisfy peak demand and emergency flow requirements. Peak usage is in the hottest weather period when demand for landscape water is greatest.

Analysis has shown that agency demand curve peaks have been pushed to artificially high levels because landscapes need significantly less water than is typically applied to them.

If landscape water use were efficient, the water infrastructure and supply would accommodate many more customers without costly upgrades. Moreover, customers would pay less for water. The result is a win-win for elected water officials: a more reliable water supply and satisfied customers.

SUCCESS STORY: 45% Savings

Examining current agency programs and past studies data, we see that it is likely that as much as 50% of current landscape water could be saved. For example, in Irvine, California, landscape water conservation programs have reduced commercial irrigation by 45%.

The advantages to landscape water conservation are far-reaching. Not only is the need for expensive infrastructure upgrades reduced, but there are also measurable environmental benefits. Efficient landscape water use yields significant dividends by reducing the tremendous costs incurred in pumping and transporting water.

It is estimated that it requires 10 TO 30% of California’s total energy supply to move water from its source to the regions in which it is consumed (California Urban Water Conservation Council, 2001).

Landscape water runoff contains pollutants from fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides that are now being measured in our lakes, streams, bays, and oceans. Metropolitan Water District of Orange County (MWDOC) conducted a peer-reviewed study that documented the relationship between landscape water waste and non-point source water pollution.

Consumer support can be quickly won through significant cost savings in individual water bills and overall water delivery system costs.

Landscape water efficiency is likely to be a water provider’s cheapest supply of new water.

Weather Based Irrigation Controllers can Save 35% of Landscape Water Use

Based on results of a California pilot program that were extrapolated across a larger customer base, one water district found that the installation of weather-based irrigation controllers would save 35% of water currently applied to landscapes in the service area.

The water district determined that installing the controllers would cost 29% less than securing more water through infrastructure expansion and water purchases.

Indoor water savings have been realized in most communities. But the American Water Works Association (AWWA) reports that 58% of non-agricultural water is applied to residential and commercial landscapes, whereas toilets use just 11%.

Low-flow toilets save water automatically with every flush, but they were a tough sell to many consumers. By contrast, convincing consumers to adopt effective outdoor conservation appliances has been easier because people enjoy spending time in their gardens.


Water district staff reports that water use is actually higher today in new homes than in older homes with comparable lot and structure sizes. This is despite:
1) increased agency conservation programs,
2) mandated installation of low-flow plumbing devices into all homes built since 1992, and
3) use of low water need plants suggested by state legislation (AB 325).

Efficient indoor water use is considered a widespread practice in the area, which points to increased landscape water use, despite conservation measures.

Traditional methods for reducing landscape water demand have proven to be difficult to enforce and monitor, expensive for long-term use, politically unpopular, and, in some cases, actually counter-productive. In light of study results about typical landscape watering behavior, these lackluster results are not surprising.

Study after study has shown that nearly everyone, from novices to experts, over-waters.

Why? Scheduling irrigation requires complex scientific equations that must be calculated daily as local weather changes. The fact is that accurately setting and adjusting irrigation schedules is difficult and time-consuming. Add to that, many homeowners mistakenly believe that the more water applied, the healthier the landscape. It’s time to stop deluding ourselves about the willingness and ability of homeowners and professionals to calculate efficient irrigation scheduling. Water providers are charting a new course for achieving their goals.

Introducing Weather-based Irrigation Management

In 1998, the first weather-based controller was tested for its ability to accurately schedule and adjust irrigation by MWD and the Irvine Ranch Water District (IRWD). Existing residential controllers were removed and replaced with WeatherTRAK-enabled controllers in forty homes. New levels of water usage were compared against historical water usage for the same households.

Following are the results of this study:

• Landscape water use in average water use households was reduced by sixteen percent to twenty-five percent.
• Plant health and appearance improved.
• Water bills were reduced.
• Customer satisfaction was measured at ninety-seven percent.

Homeowners reported that their plants looked as good as or better than they did prior to WeatherTRAK installation, their water bills were lower, and that they did not have to do anything. Participants appreciated the convenience offered by the WeatherTRAK-enabled controller, which fully automates irrigation. This study, which opened the eyes of agency officials, marked the first time a controller was shown to maximize conservation by accurately irrigating in accordance with plants’ varied needs and daily, local weather conditions.

A broad range of studies with varied settings and objectives has proven the benefits of weather-based irrigation management. WeatherTRAK-enabled controllers, now available from The Toro Company, Irritrol Systems, and HydroPoint Data Systems, have been tested more than all other products combined.

One of many programs worthy of note is the California EPA-funded study of the use of WeatherTRAK-enabled controllers in micro-watershed areas. Study methodology tested the controllers in neighborhoods of three-to-four-hundred homes with street landscapes as well as homeowner association common areas and parks.

The goal was to measure the ability of weather-based irrigation controllers to reduce urban runoff and non-point source water pollution through precise calculation of water applications.

The study found that:

RUNOFF in neighborhoods with WeatherTRAK-enabled controllers was reduced by 71%, when compared to control neighborhoods.

Mass  loading of pollutants into the waterway was correspondingly reduced by 71%.

These impressive results led directly to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation providing $1.5 million in rebate funds for Orange County-based water agencies to distribute to consumers who install approved smart controllers.

The ability to broadcast weather-based data (local evapotranspiration, or ET, values) and automate plant-specific irrigation scheduling provides additional benefits, including:

Peaking Management Service: daily, wireless transmission of ET data for maximum water use efficiency.

Rain/Winter Shut-off Service: automated irrigation suspension during rain and the winter season, particularly useful in colder climates.

Drought Management Service:  broadcasting during emergency drought conditions, is a powerful tool for enforcing water conservation.

To read the full explanation of adopting and implementing a new water conservation program for your community, contact WeatherTRAK for their white paper by Tom Ash, entitled, "How to Implement a Cost-effective Landscape Water Efficiency Program".

WeatherTRAK
www.weathertrak.com

Planting a billion trees is an astonishing number! The Nature Conservancy's Plant a Billion Trees Campaign will preserve and restore Brazil's Atlantic Forest.

The threat is dire. "No tropical forest on earth has come closer to total destruction," says Claudia Picone, an information resource coordinator for The Nature Conservancy.

The Atlantic Forest is a spectacularly complex and biologically diverse expanse of tropical rainforest on the coast of Brazil. Once twice the size of Texas, only 7 percent of the original forest remains—it has been ravaged by ranching, illegal logging, agriculture, and other pressures.

The campaign to plant one billion trees in the Atlantic Forest continues The Nature Conservancy's mighty efforts to preserve the very special ecosystem. According to Picone, "We've finally turned the corner, and people are starting to realize that there are economic benefits to leaving the forest standing instead of cutting it down."

Since The Nature Conservancy's founding in 1951, it has protected more than 117 million acres of land and 5,000 miles of rivers around the world. The group has more than a million members and works in all 50 states and more than 30 countries.

If you want to lend a hand…
Give to the Conservancy's Plant a Billion Trees campaign
www.plantabillion.org

Global warming may dominate headlines today. Ecosystem degradation will do so tomorrow.

To prepare businesses for this new landscape, three organizations have launched a set of guidelines designed to help companies proactively develop strategies to manage risks and opportunities arising from ecosystem degradation.

The guidelines, called the Corporate Ecosystem Services Review (3.5 MB) were developed by the World Resources Institute (WRI) in collaboration with the Meridian Institute and World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Five WBCSD members - Akzo Nobel, BC Hydro, Mondi, Rio Tinto, and Syngenta - "road-tested" the methodology and provided input to its design.

"The world's forests, wetlands, and other ecosystems are under tremendous pressure due to climate change, land conversion, and many other factors," said Jonathan Lash, President, WRI. "As ecosystems degrade, companies will face operational, regulatory, and reputational risks while those that offer solutions may find new business opportunities and new sources of revenue."

Ecosystems provide companies with a wide variety of benefits or services including

• Freshwater
• Wood
• Pollination
• Climate regulation
• Protection from natural hazards,

...to name a few.

"Ecosystem services are often unacknowledged, yet they underpin many corporate activities," said John Ehrmann, Managing Partner of the Meridian Institute. "I am pleased with the feedback from company managers who are finding the guidelines helpful for developing strategies that improve both corporate performance and ecosystem stewardship."

Guideline Benefits

The road-testers found that the guidelines can provide a number of other benefits as well.

• They can help companies anticipate new markets and government policies that may emerge in response to ecosystem degradation.
• They can strengthen corporate environmental impact assessments by adding considerations traditional methods may overlook.
• They also can help companies better manage conflicts over resources, identifying options for better trade-offs between ecosystem services.

"The methodology helped us identify and rank emerging problems, and provided us with a framework for turning risks into opportunities," said Peter Gardiner, natural resources manager at Mondi, a leading international paper and packaging manufacturer.

Mondi's newfound strategies include a number of operational changes that will increase the company's efficiency in using freshwater, a scarce ecosystem service, and lead to new markets for the company's byproducts.

"The Corporate Ecosystem Review helped us to better understand how a number of emerging environmental changes are likely to affect our business and how our company might best position itself to respond to these changes," said Steve Hunt, Senior Vice President, Asia-Pacific, Eka Chemicals, a division of chemical giant Akzo Nobel.

Some road-testers, such as Mondi and BC Hydro, used the guidelines to gain insight into the direct implications that ecosystem trends pose for them.

Other road-testers, such as Akzo Nobel and Syngenta, applied the methodology to understand the risks faced by a segment of their customers due to ecosystem degradation and, in turn, discovered opportunities for new products or services that address these risks. The guidelines profile these and other road-test experiences.

"We're going to be hearing a lot about the Corporate Ecosystem Services Review. A couple dozen more WBCSD members are already taking it up this year," said Björn Stigson, President of the WBCSD. "Leading companies realize that they need to be prepared for the business challenges posed by ecosystem decline."

Download Corporate Ecosystem Services Review"

About the sponsors of this ecosystem review

The World Resources Institute is an independent, non-partisan and nonprofit organization with a staff of more than 100 scientists, economists, policy experts, business analysts, statistical analysts, mapmakers, and communicators developing and promoting policies that will help protect the Earth and improve people's lives.

The Meridian Institute is a neutral, nonprofit organization that helps decision-makers and diverse stakeholders address society's most contentious public policy issues through process design and facilitation.

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development brings together some 200 international companies in a shared commitment to sustainable development through economic growth, ecological balance, and social progress.