By installing smart irrigation controllers in January 2012, the Shadow Canyon community in Tustin Ranch, Ca., saved two million gallons of water by January 2013 despite record-level summer temperatures.

Residents at Shadow Canyon, a three-acre condominium complex surrounded by parks and a golf course, continue to enjoy their scenic outdoors while doing their part to help conserve water in the thirsty Southern Californian town of Tustin Ranch.

The Shadow Canyon homeowners association partnered with Earthco Commercial Landscape to retrofit the community's common area landscapes with smart irrigation controllers and centralized control, helping to eliminate wasteful water runoff and harmful hardscape damage while optimizing plant health and landscape appearance.

HydroPoint Data Systems, Inc, who supplied the WeatherTRAK Smart Water Manager Solution that was installed in 2012, stated that this action saved more than two million gallons of water, reducing the complex's outdoor water consumption by 43.5 percent.

"The Shadow Canyon community achieved immediate results with this irrigation technology," said Board President Jim Youtes. "The Earthco team has consistently reduced our outdoor water use every month to deliver rapid project payback. Our water bill savings and our landscapes continue to thrive."

The smart irrigation controllers integrate site-specific, daily evapotranspiration weather data with programmable parameters for plant, soil and sprinkler types to automate irrigation schedules and deliver precise water requirements for each zone of the Shadow Canyon landscape - essentially applying the right amount of water at the right time.

The 2 million gallons of water saved between January, 2012, and January, 2013 is even more impressive when you factor in the record-level temperatures that occurred that summer. Some of the project costs were financed with rebates from local water agency programs. And the dollar savings in water usage is already proving its worth according to community manager Morgen Hardigree.

"(They) have been earmarked for a variety of improvement projects to enhance value and curb appeal across the community."