The Port Washington Water District (PWWD) is setting the benchmark for water conservation with its progressive and proactive Be Smart and Green, Save 15 campaign. Joined by local government officials, the District laid out plans last summer to reduce District-wide water consumption by 15 percent during the irrigation season.
The campaign reflects estimates by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) that pumpage amounts may be surpassing Nassau County’s permissible yields by 15 percent. “The Be Smart and Green, Save 15 water conservation campaign is vital to the sustainability of our sole source aquifer,” said David Brackett, Chairman of PWWD’s Board of Commissioners. “As we head into the peak part of the summer in terms of water consumption per resident, we implore the community to come together, to join this ever-important effort and to implement some simple yet effective conservation tactics to conserve our most precious natural resource.”
The campaign has been designed to educate residents and to provide helpful suggestions to effortlessly reduce their water consumption. “If we continue pumping at current levels, we will be jeopardizing the future sustainability of the peninsula’s water supply by introducing the irreversible effects of saltwater intrusion,” said PWWD Commissioner Mindy Germain. “The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is undertaking a study that will give us an exact picture of our pumpage yields and will allow us to fully understand what level of pumping will keep our supply sustainable. Until this study is complete, we ask that all residents strictly adhere to Nassau County’s ordinance of the odd-even watering schedule as this will have a positive impact and contribute to our conservation goals in a very significant way.”
Aside from educating residents, the District has expanded its water conservation program by implementing a distribution leak-detection program that has already identified 17 locations where water is being wasted. By fixing these leaks alone, the District anticipates achieving a water savings of more than 113,000 gallons per day!
In addition, the District will consult with its top water users to improve their water efficiency by reviewing existing irrigation systems to reduce water waste.
Last summer the District pilot-tested EPA WaterSense smart irrigation controller technology at its administration building, which resulted in a significant reduction in SAVE Be SMART and GREEN, water use while maintaining a green lawn. “The District is doing everything it can with the resources at its disposal to identify and to target locations throughout the District where water is unnecessarily being wasted,” said PWWD Commissioner Peter Meyer. “The use of state-of-the-art technology enabled us to save large sums of water. The District’s smart irrigation controller pilot program at our headquarters, for example, has kept our lawn and plants green while saving more than 52,000 gallons of water since we conducted the pilot last summer.”
To learn more about this program, visit our Be Smart and Green, Save 15 page within our website, and visit our Conservation page for helpful tips and suggestions for conserving water at home, or your place of business.
