Report: Major Flaws in Austin Water Conservation Program

Growing Drought, Rising Water Rates Prompt Calls For Overhaul

AUSTIN – A new report of conservation programs at the Austin Water Utility, “Read It and Leak,” finds slow progress in a number of programs to reduce water use.  Amidst a growing drought and the highest combined residential water-wastewater rates of the 10 largest cities in Texas at the beginning of 2011, the report called for more reforms and new programs that will convert Austin’s promises to real action and water savings.

“Water conservation is one of the most essential ways to mitigate rising costs,” said Paul Robbins, author of the report and one of the original founders of the City of Austin’s resource management efforts in the 1980s. “Unfortunately, this audit of statistics and policy shows a lack of training and achievement on the part of the people managing water conservation efforts.”

Highlights of Report

•  Water rate increases of over 40% are predicted in the next five years, in part because of the new half-billion dollar water treatment plant.  “At this point in Austin’s history, the water treatment plant and conservation are direct competitors,” said Robbins.  “The conservation programs need to be removed from the water utility so they can run independently without this conflict of interest.”

• One possible alternative to the new plant, reclaimed water, can provide about 40 million gallons per day, almost as much as the new 50-million gallon per day plant.  Three-quarters of this is possible to bring online by the end of the decade.

• Several existing water conservation programs will end in the next few years, and new ones are not being developed to take their place.  A review of a 2007 plan for 19 new initiatives to accelerate water conservation shows that after 4 years, 10 of them received little or no attention.  Only 7 are working well, and most of them lack ways to measure their savings. 

• The most cost-effective water conservation program, for commercial customers, does not even have one full-time staff person.

• The program with the largest effect on summer water use, the two-day per week watering ordinance, is suffering from lack of staff and failure to aggressively enforce violations.

• Over 1,000 miles of old cast-iron water mains prone to leaks are at the end of their expected life.  At proposed funding rates, it will literally take over 70 years to replace them.

• A study of new electronic water meters that can save water and money has been delayed while the utility continues funding of the half-billion dollar plant.

More Rate Increases Coming

Austin’s water rates increased 74% between 2001 and 2011.  They are expected to go up more than 40% by 2016, in part due to at least $508 million spent by the utility to build Water Treatment Plant #4 on Lake Travis.  Because of this mandatory cost, conservation and other discretionary programs at the water utility may be defunded if water sales fall below minimum requirements.

Chris Herbert, a member of the City of Austin Resource Management Commission, said “The Commission was not happy that the water utility decided to proceed with its new Ten-Year Plan without a public review of their assumptions.  “How can we advise City Council on water conservation programs without even analyzing their Plan?  Robbins’ report opens the door to analyze information and policy decisions that have not seen daylight.”

Luke Metzger, Director of Environment Texas, a statewide advocacy group based in Austin, also gave his perception of the report.  “Despite all the controversy about water issues in Austin, water conservation seems to be the one thing everyone agrees on.  Yet this report leaves you wondering if we’ll make any major progress.”

The report is available to the public at: www.environmentaldirectory.info/