3-day-a-week watering OK'd

Denver Water urges customers to keep conservation habits

Jerd Smith, Rocky Mountain News

Published April 13, 2006 at midnight

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Colorado's largest water utility approved a three-day-per-week lawn watering program this summer and urged its 1.2 million customers to continue keeping the lid on use, even though its reservoirs are expected to fill nicely this summer.

Homeowners can choose which three days they water, but are prohibited from running sprinklers between the hours of 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Denver Water officials said they hoped people would pay close attention to the weather this summer, using their sprinkler systems fewer than three days if Mother Nature has delivered a recent rainstorm in any given week.

"The purpose of this program is to encourage customers to maintain the good habits they have already learned," said Marie Bassett, Denver Water's director of public affairs. Denver's customers have reduced water use by about 20 percent since the drought struck in 2002.

The 2006 program takes effect May 1.

Denver, like other communities, is benefiting from a year in which deep mountain snows have been plentiful and the spring snowmelt is likely to fill its system. Snowpack accounts for roughly 85 percent of Colorado's annual drinking water supplies.

Denver's water storage system is about 82 percent full, even before runoff hits its peak later this spring. Lake Dillon, the agency's largest storage pond, is so full already that Denver is considering letting some of its waters spill into the Blue River to help manage any potential flood flows that may come later.

"Now we need to take the long view," said Denver Water Board Commissioner Tom Gougeon. "With the return of normal circumstances we have to keep moving the baseline on how efficient we can be."

Conservation groups and others have long chided Denver for not being more aggressive with water conservation programs.

But Bart Miller, an analyst with Western Resource Advocates, a Boulder-based environmental think tank, lauded the giant utility Wednesday.

"It shows an active effort by the (Denver Water Board) to continue the conservation savings they're already beginning to see," Miller said.

Denver's announcement comes as other cities are evaluating their water supplies as well.

Aurora will decide April 17 whether to approve a three-day-per-week watering plan, as its utility staff is recommending. But dozens of other communities, happy with heavy mountain snows and the prospect of a healthy spring runoff, don't plan to limit outdoor water use this summer.

"We don't anticipate any restrictions," said Steve Berry, spokesman for Colorado Springs Utilities.

Still, conservationists and others urge caution when it comes to water use.

Though mountain snowpacks are deep in Denver's watersheds, statewide snowpack failed to reach average this year, measuring just 94 percent of average April 1.

Except for last year, statewide snowpacks have lagged below average since 1999, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

smithj@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-5474

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