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LCN Irrigation News February, 200302-01-03 | News

Denver to Give Away
Water-Saving Kits

DENVER – Denver Water plans to give away 10,000 water-saving kits in an effort to reduce water use during the current drought.

The Denver Water Board voted to spend $80,000 on the kits, which will be distributed at the Colorado Garden and Home Show in February. The kits contain a water-saving shower head, leak-detector tablets for toilets, flow reducers for water faucets and a bucket good for collecting water in showers, said Liz Gardener, conservation manager for Denver Water.

?EUR??,,????'??If 70 percent of the people who take them actually install these devices, we will save 131 acre-feet of water annually,?EUR??,,????'?? Gardener said.

Denver Water?EUR??,,????'???s reservoirs, and others around the state, are about 48 percent full, compared with an average of 80 percent this time of year. Denver Water serves 1.1 million people in metro Denver. Customers are banned from any outdoor water use through the winter to conserve water supplies.

Water Audits on the Rise

CHICAGO – Drought conditions throughout the country and the increasing focus being placed upon visible water users to conserve more water are leading many municipalities to retain irrigation consultants who can audit their systems and provide recommendations for improved water efficiency. This according to Jim Barrett, president of the American Society of Irrigation Consultants (ASIC).

?EUR??,,????'??In many parts of the country, water wars are breaking out, pitting state and local officials, and even neighbors against one another,?EUR??,,????'?? he explained. ?EUR??,,????'??This, in turn, is putting the microscope on any visible entity that uses a significant amount of water.?EUR??,,????'??

Barrett noted that among the users who are receiving the most attention are municipalities with parks and other large water needs. For more information visit: www.asic.org.