Taking charge of our future
The Current Path Is Unsustainable So What Should We Do?
Here is what we know for sure: the overdraft is large and likely to increase;
- Aquifer levels are decreasing;
- More and more rural wells are going dry;
- Government officials refuse to acknowledge that current programs and policies are promoting an unsustainable water future for our region;
- The current path is not sustainable.
Until officials acknowledge that a water management problem exists, steps cannot be taken to assure that sufficient supplies of water will be available for future generations. Once officials acknowledge that the current direction must be changed, the best way to take charge is to commit to making plans for what to do now and what to do for the long term.
The first of these steps is to prepare a strategic or long-term plan.A strategic plan looks decades ahead, assesses the possible water supply and demand options we will have, and identifies a sensible course of action for the region to take. The goals for this long-term plan should include targets to reduce the overdraft. All municipalities plus the county Board of Supervisors must come together and accept that continued competition for our limited water supply will accelerate the draining of the aquifer and harm the Verde River.
Short-term plans are also necessary. The priority should be to reduce current water demand. Each municipality and the county Board of Supervisors need to develop their own conservation program and require new development to be water-neutral.
The strategic and short-term plans developed by the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority are described as illustrations of how one region has taken charge of their water future
Strategic Planning
Strategic planning begins with a clear statement of long-term water management goals. For example, do we want to slow down and stabilize the drain on the aquifer? Do we want to restore the aquifer's contribution to the upper Verde River? Do we have concerns over water quality such as arsenic levels? What is the trade-off between water sustainability and growth? Answers to questions such as these must be explicit and acceptable to all stakeholders in the region.
The next step is to prepare a forecast of future demand for water. Because of all the uncertainties of what the future might bring, strategic plans usually describe a range of scenarios that might unfold. These scenarios can be based on different expectations regarding population growth, climate change and other factors. The baseline forecast typically assumes that all current policies and programs will continue. Two or more scenarios of demand can be prepared based on different levels of demand reduction initiatives – conservation measures – that will be introduced. These measures may include information campaigns, incentives for efficient appliances, and/or regulations for landscape water use.
While conservation measures are necessary to reduce the demand for water, the strategic plan must also identify potential additional sources of water. For example, aquifer recharge might increase if we invest in new stormwater capture facilities.
Finalization of the strategic plan involves evaluating how well the different demand scenarios combined with possible supply additions will meet the strategic goals.
Short-term planning
Local plans focus on planning the set of water conservation measures needed to reduce water use to achieve goals. When water demand is reduced in single and multi-family residences, commercial buildings, and institutional facilities, the municipality will reduce its contribution to the overdraft. There are three types of water conservation measures
- Behavioral measures to influence day-to-day habits and behaviors, such as asking consumers to take shorter showers, are expensive and usually have low short-term impacts on water usage;
- Incentives for implementing conservation measures, such as payments to encourage the installation of high efficiency toilets, rainwater harvesting, turf removal, or other actions have significant impacts at reasonable cost;
- Regulatory measures, such as the mandatory use of drought-tolerant vegetation in new developments, can achieve significant reductions in water use but may not be acceptable to the community.
Each municipality in the PrAMA faces its unique situation related to the condition of its housing stock, availability of supplies besides the aquifer, experience with conservation, budgetary considerations and other factors. However, all must develop realistic plans based on reducing total and residential GPCD goals that are established in the PrAMA strategic plan. The commitment by government officials of time and money to prepare and implement these plans will be key to their success. Short-term plans need to be updated on a regular schedule, such as biannually, as feedback is received on the effectiveness of each conservation measure.
Example: Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority
Here is a great example of water conservation planning and management.
The City of Albuquerque has taken planning seriously for many years. The city determined that the best way to assure an ample water supply and to protect their aquifer was to giveresponsibility and authority to the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority. This organization, governed by a Board of City, County and nearby town officials, recently published their updated strategic plan “Water 2120: Securing Our Water Future”. Highlights include 100-year demand scenarios based on reducing total GPCD, a range of population increases, and a range of conservation measures. Supplies were identified as surface water flowing through New Mexico’s Middle Rio Grande Valley, recharge of wastewater, and the local aquifer.
Our PrAMA situation is different than Albuquerque's so the content of our regional strategic plan will be different. What is common is that both require a region-wide approach that necessitates an authority or district to coordinate all programs to achieve the goal of an assured long-term water supply. Also common to both is the need for a commitment by government officials of time and money to prepare meaningful plans. The world keeps changing so strategic plans need to be updated on a periodic basis.
The Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority produced a 20-year “Water Conservation Plan Update” to “nest” into the 100-year strategic plan. The 20-year goal is to reduce total per capita water use from 128 to 110 GPCD. The plan requires adaptive management – periodic monitoring to verify progress and modify programs, if needed, to achieve the goal. For the current plan, all conservation programs were evaluated; some residential incentives were discontinued and new initiatives were implemented in the areas of irrigation efficiency and education.