Urban Water Resources –
Programming Areas
Bruce Lesikar
Texas AgriLife Extension Service
Presentation Overview
•
•
•
•
Water - do we have extra?
How can we make a difference?
How to address the water issue?
Our programs
• What to do?
Do We Have Unused Water?
No!!!
•
Water Conservation – Management of our water resources, efficient use, water
quality protection
Hydrologic Cycle
Development Changes Local Hydrology
• How we manage development defines the
available water sources
How Do You Foster Change?
• Provide general knowledge
• Build capacity in practitioners
• Remove barriers: political, financial, regulations,
codes, ordinances
• Provide encouragement
– Positive
• Incentives
• Free stuff
– Negative
• Pricing
• Fines
• Environmental regulations
Water Supply & Demand
•
•
•
•
Surface water
Groundwater
Mineralized Groundwater
Gulf of Mexico
• Alternative supplies
– Harvested Rainwater
– Condensate
– Graywater
– Wastewater reuse
• Drivers
– Economics
– Public & political will
– Energy & water nexus
– Perception
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
In-home water use: drinking, washing,
toilet, & laundry
Landscaping: home & business
Green space: athletic fields, parks &
golf courses
Pets & Wildlife
Horticulture
Animal production
Crop, Forest, Range, Forage
production
Irrigation field crops
Commercial businesses: everything
needs water – place to work
Streams & wetlands
Lakes: water supply, recreation &
habitat
Water features
Swimming pools
Preference and Feasibility – Region C
• What is desirable?
• What is feasible?
• How to change?
–
–
–
–
–
–
Public acceptance
New knowledge
Technology
Build capacity
Attitude – Tradition
Modify infrastructure
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Reuse treated wastewater
Interbasin water transfer
Build new reservoirs
Require efficient ag. Irrigation
Require industrial water reuse
Purchase and lease water rights
Aquifer storage and recovery
Residential rainwater harvesting
Water saving landscape ordinances
Require water efficient appliances
Require ag irrig. water scheduling
Residential graywater use
Plant drought tolerant crops
Drill new wells
Addressing Water Issues
• Water literacy – understand
water issues
• Earthkind plants - efficient
use
• Earthkind landscapes
• Efficient irrigation systems –
Irrigation practitioners
• Management of Irrigation
systems
• Turf grass management –
SAFE, golf courses
• Stormwater management
• Stream processes
• Stream restoration
• Youth knowledge
• Plant diseases & water
• Entomology & water
• Watershed protection plans
– fertilization, livestock
production, waste
management
• Onsite wastewater
treatment and reuse
• Graywater systems
• In-home conservation
• In-home reuse & nonpotable toilet flushing
• Rainwater harvesting
• Land management for
efficient water use
• Mineralized water treatment
- desalinization
What can we make a difference?
• Everyone involved!!!!
• All audiences need
some water literacy
• Who will be faced
with the really tough
decisions?????
Water Literacy
• How can we help people make informed
decisions about water conservation?
• Need a working understanding of
relationship between supply, storage and
demand!!!!!!
• What is a good approach to helping
people gain a functional knowledge of
these factors????
Rainwater Harvesting
• Calculate available
supply based on
rainfall & roof area
• Decide on the size of
reservoir
• Decide on the water
demand
–
–
–
–
Drinking / Indoor
Landscape
Wildlife
Animals
City Water Conservation Programs
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Leak Detection—city lines
Residential Water Audits
Landscape Requirements
Plumbing & Appliance Retrofits/Rebates
Education Programs
Differential Pricing [i.e. more use=more $$$]
Fugitive Water [i.e. h2o running down streets]
Reuse/Reclaimed Water
Wastewater Reuse - Graywater
•
•
•
•
Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems
Graywater law HB2661 -2003
Septic Regulations – January 2005
Separate blackwater and graywater and
use graywater for landscape
• Landscape irrigation
Separate graywater
and blackwater
collection and
treatment systems.
Irrigation Practitioner Training
http://irrigation.tamu.edu
Groundwater Management through
Conservation Districts
• State’s preferred method for
Groundwater Management
• Locally elected Board of Directors
• Local decisions on how to manage
groundwater
• Difficult to actually decrease or limit
groundwater use
Groundwater Conservation Districts
Creation Process - Overview
• Action of the Legislature
• Landowner Petition
• Initiated by the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality (TCEQ)
• Adding Territory to an Existing District
New GCD
• Once a designation is made the clock
starts……..
– County courts are notified to begin action
• Temporary board of directors
• Election schedule
– Texas AgriLife Extension Service is notified to begin
educational programs
Texas AgriLife Extension Service
North Central Texas PGMA
• 13 County PGMA
• Collin, Cooke, Dallas,
Denton, Ellis, Fannin,
Grayson Hood,
Johnson, Montague,
Parker, Tarrant, Wise
• District formed: Hood
Parker, Wise
Montague, Tarrant
Central Texas PGMA
• Five county PGMA
• Bosque, Coryell,
Hill, McLennon,
Somervell
• Established
October 28, 2008
Summary
•
•
•
•
Water - do we have extra?
How can we make a difference?
How to address the water issue?
Our programs
• What to do work?
• Current infrastructure