20 x 2020 Water Conservation Plan

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | February 18th, 2009

In February 2008, Governor Schwarzenegger introduced a seven-part comprehensive plan for improving the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. As part of this effort, the Governor

In February 2008, Governor Schwarzenegger introduced a seven-part comprehensive plan for improving the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. As part of this effort, the Governor directed state agencies to develop a plan to reduce statewide per capita urban water use by 20 percent by the year 2020. This marked the initiation of the 20x2020 Water Conservation Plan (20x2020 Plan) process. The 20x2020 Plan sets forth a statewide road map to maximize the state’s urban water efficiency and conservation opportunities between 2009 and 2020, and beyond. It aims to set in motion a range of activities designed to achieve the 20 percent per capita reduction in urban water demand by 2020. These activities include improving an understanding of the variation in water use across California, promoting legislative initiatives that incentivize water agencies to promote water conservation, and creating evaluation and enforcement mechanisms to assure regional and statewide goals are met. The 20x2020 Plan discusses these many activities in detail.

2015 Urban Water Management Plan

Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) | June 1st, 2016

Metropolitan’s 2015 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP) has been prepared in compliance with Water Code Section 10608.36 of SB X7-7, which was enacted in 2009, a

Metropolitan’s 2015 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP) has been prepared in compliance with Water Code Section 10608.36 of SB X7-7, which was enacted in 2009, and Sections 10610 through 10656 of the Urban Water Management Planning Act (Act), which were added by Statute 1983, Chapter 1009, and became effective on January 1, 1984. This Act requires that every urban water supplier providing water for municipal purposes to more than 3,000 customers or supplying more than 3,000 acre-feet of water annually prepare and adopt, in accordance with prescribed requirements, an urban water management plan. The Act requires urban water suppliers to describe and evaluate sources of water supply, efficient uses of water, demand management measures, implementation strategy and schedule, and other relevant information and programs. Urban water suppliers are required by the Act to update their UWMP and submit a complete plan to the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) every five years. An UWMP is required in order for a water supplier to be eligible for DWR administered state grants and loans and drought assistance. As with Metropolitan’s previous plans, the 2015 UWMP does not explicitly discuss specific activities undertaken by its member agencies unless they relate to one of Metropolitan’s water demand or supply management programs. Presumably, each member agency will discuss these activities in its UWMP. The information included in the 2015 UWMP represents the most current and available planning projections of supply capability and demand developed through a collaborative process with the member agencies. Metropolitan’s Board recently adopted the 2015 Integrated Water Resources Plan, Water Tomorrow (2015 IRP Update), which represents Metropolitan’s comprehensive planning process and will serve as Metropolitan’s blueprint for long-term water reliability, including key supply development and water use efficiency goals.

Achievements in Conservation, Recycling, and Groundwater Recharge Covering Fiscal Year July 2018-June 2019

Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) | March 1st, 2020

Adapting to Change: Utility Systems and Declining Flows

California Urban Water Agencies (CUWA) | November 1st, 2017

During the recent historic drought, Californians responded to the call for emergency statewide water use reductions, which the state has recognized as a highly su

During the recent historic drought, Californians responded to the call for emergency statewide water use reductions, which the state has recognized as a highly successful outcome. However, this significant reduction in water demands has brought to light some unintended consequences of declining flows that ripple throughout the interconnected urban water cycle. These observations offer a preview into the potential impact of establishing permanent indoor water use targets at or below the thresholds achieved as a result of the governor’s emergency conservation mandate. California’s water industry leaders, including regulators and purveyors, are working to understand the system-wide impacts of increased conservation so that decision makers are better informed as they address California’s current and future water challenges. Through a partnership with California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA), Water Research Foundation(WRF), WateReuse California, and California Water Environment Association(CWEA), California WaterUrban Agencies(CUWA) has developed this white paper to provide decisionmakers, water/wastewater system managers, and other stakeholders an understanding of the impacts of declining flows resulting from substantial reductions in indoor water use and how utilities are adapting to these circumstances.

An Assessment of Urban Water Demand Forecasts in California

Pacific Institute | August 5th, 2020

In California, urban per capita water demand has declined dramatically over the past several decades, driven in part by greater uptake of water-efficient devices. These r

In California, urban per capita water demand has declined dramatically over the past several decades, driven in part by greater uptake of water-efficient devices. These reductions have important implications for estimating future water demand. However, failure to account for the long-term trend of declining per capita water demand has led to routine overestimation of future water demand. This can lead to unnecessary and costly investment in unneeded infrastructure and new sources of supply, higher costs, and adverse environmental impacts. This report examines the accuracy of long-range water demand forecasts for California’s 10 largest urban water suppliers. It finds that per capita water demand declined for all water suppliers between 2000 and 2015. In most cases, reductions in per capita water demand were so large that total water demand declined during this period. Additionally, all water suppliers overestimated demand, driven largely by inflated estimates of per capita water demand and, to a lesser extent, overestimates of population growth rates. The report offers recommendations on how to improve the accuracy of long-range water demand forecasts.

Assessment of California's Water Footprint

Pacific Institute | December 11th, 2012

The Pacific Institute has released the first comprehensive assessment of California’s water footprint, providing an important perspective on the interconnections betwee

The Pacific Institute has released the first comprehensive assessment of California’s water footprint, providing an important perspective on the interconnections between everyday activities and impacts to water resources – both at home and around the world. The new report, California’s Water Footprint, analyzes the state’s water footprint – that is the amount of water required to produce the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the beverages we drink, and the other goods on which we rely. The water footprint of the average Californian is 1,500 gallons per day, slightly less than the average American but considerably more than the average resident in other developed countries or in the rest of the world.

Bay Area Green Infrastructure Water Quality Synthesis

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) / Aquatic Science Center (ASC) | June 1st, 2018

San Francisco Bay is impacted by the numerous urban pollutants that flow from the surrounding landscape during storm events. In San Francisco Bay, total maximum daily lo

San Francisco Bay is impacted by the numerous urban pollutants that flow from the surrounding landscape during storm events. In San Francisco Bay, total maximum daily load (TMDL) clean-up plans are in place for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and mercury (Hg) (Davis et al., 2007; Davis et al., 2012). As municipalities strive to reach regulatory targets, green infrastructure (GI) presents a promising solution for managing stormwater pollutants while achieving additional environmental and social benefits. However, remaining data gaps including the best design layout, media composition, and vegetation and submerged zone effects on performance can prevent local managers from accurately assessing water quality benefits provided by green infrastructure as well as the maintenance needs to sustain adequate performance.

Building Drought Resilience in California’s Cities and Suburbs

Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) | June 1st, 2017

Droughts are a recurring feature of California’s climate. Major droughts provide an opportunity to review management responses and derive policy lessons that can better

Droughts are a recurring feature of California’s climate. Major droughts provide an opportunity to review management responses and derive policy lessons that can better prepare society for the next one. Here we take stock of how California’s cities and suburbs have responded to recent droughts, review the state’s evolving role in urban drought management, and recommend actions to increase urban areas’ drought resilience. California’s urban water supply system is complex and highly decentralized, with 400-plus utilities serving more than 90 percent of the state’s residents. Following the hard lessons learned from the 1976–77 and 1987–92 droughts, these utilities made substantial investments in drought resilience. This included diversifying supplies with new surface and underground storage, interconnections with neighboring suppliers, recycled wastewater, and water transfer agreements, as well as freeing up supplies by reducing indoor water use. Consequently, urban water suppliers generally believed they were prepared as the state entered a five-year drought in 2012.

California Single Family Water Use Efficiency Study

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | April 20th, 2011

The California Single Family Home Water Use Efficiency Study includes data from many traditional sources such as billing data, survey data, weather data and aerial photo

The California Single Family Home Water Use Efficiency Study includes data from many traditional sources such as billing data, survey data, weather data and aerial photo information to analyze the water use patterns of a sample of over 700 single-family homes across ten water agencies throughout the State of California. Detailed flow trace data was obtained from portable data loggers which were attached to the water meters of each of the study homes. These flow traces provided flow readings at ten second intervals from the magnetic pickup, which generate 80-100 pulses per gallon. These highly detailed flow data make it possible to identify individual water use events and to categorize them by their end-use. The flow trace data tell not just how many gallons per day the home used, but how many gallons per day were used for individual end uses such as toilet flushing, clothes washing, dishwashers, showers, irrigation, faucets and leaks. Detailed use information can be pulled from the trace, giving for example, a count of toilet flushes and toilet flush volumes during a logging period. Researchers used flow trace data to determine levels of daily use in the homes and the efficiency of that use. Although the flow trace technique contains marginal error, such as from the mis-categorization of some events, it provides information on end uses-that is not available from any other source. This report summarizes the results of the study which began in 2005 and was completed in 2010. Water use patterns found during the 2007 logging period were analyzed to show how much potential remains for conservation savings from both indoor and outdoor efforts. 

California’s Next Million Acre-Feet: Saving Water, Energy, and Money

Pacific Institute | September 26th, 2010

A new analysis from the Pacific Institute recommends specific actions that can annually save a million acre-feet of water quickly and at a lower economic and ecological c

A new analysis from the Pacific Institute recommends specific actions that can annually save a million acre-feet of water quickly and at a lower economic and ecological cost than developing new supplies. The assessment notes that new actions are immediately needed to reduce the growing tensions over the state’s water resources and to address California’s persistent water supply challenges. This is a key time for California water: the California Water Bond has been tabled for at least two years and may be scrapped altogether. New reviews from around the state are calling for prompt efforts to use technology, economics, and institutional reform to address the state’s water crisis. All parties seem to agree that the state will need a diverse portfolio of solutions – but it makes the most sense to do the most effective things first. The Pacific Institute’s new report, California’s Next Million Acre-Feet: Saving Water, Energy, and Money, quantifies more than one million acre-feet of water that can be conserved through improved efficiency, with savings coming from the urban and industrial sectors and improvements in agriculture. “There is vast untapped potential to reduce our demand for water without affecting the services and benefits that water provides,” said Heather Cooley, co-director of the Pacific Institute’s Water Program and lead author of the report. “We identified how the next million acre-feet of water can be conserved in California, with approximately 30% of the savings from the urban sector and 70% from the agricultural sector. Both sectors have savings potential far exceeding this amount, and while we could have identified one million acre-feet of water savings annually in either sector alone, we’re showing how all sectors can benefit from these improvements.” In the urban sector, the report identifies water savings from replacing old, inefficient water-using devices with high-efficiency models in our homes and businesses, as well as replacing some lawns with low-water-use plants. In the agricultural sector, best water management practices include weather-based irrigation scheduling, regulated deficit irrigation, and switching from gravity or flood irrigation to sprinkler or drip irrigation systems. The efficiency improvements identified in California’s Next Million Acre-Feet require an upfront investment of less than $1.9 billion, costs that could be borne by a mix of state, federal, and local agencies and individuals – all at a small fraction of the cost of the proposed water bond. The cost of the conserved water is $185 per acre-foot for the agricultural sector and a net savings of $99 per acre-foot for the urban sector, over the lifetime of the efficiency improvement. Conserving water also conserves energy, saves money, and reduces the need for new water and energy projects.