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West Jordan adopts five-year water conservation plan, sets 2030 turf-reduction goals
Summary
Ordinance 24-57 updates the city's water conservation plan: targets include keeping demand under 170 gallons per capita per day and removing 100,000 square feet of nonfunctional turf on city and private property by 2030; staff may seek grants to fund a conservation specialist.
The West Jordan City Council adopted an updated five-year water conservation plan (Ordinance 24-57) on a 6-0 vote Wednesday evening. The plan establishes specific conservation goals and identifies staff actions and grant opportunities to support residential and city-owned turf reduction and water-use monitoring.
City staffer Greg Davenport outlined the plan and its goals: keep water demand below 170 gallons per capita per day (GPCD); reduce nonfunctional turf in city-owned facilities by 100,000 square feet by 2030; and encourage a matching 100,000-square-foot reduction in private residential turf by 2030. The plan formalizes existing rebate programs run by the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District and proposes new work to improve leak detection, create an online resource page for residents and pursue grant money to hire a water conservation specialist.
Davenport told council members the city already saw rebate redemptions in 2023 and had removed public nonfunctional turf investments in excess of $200,000 to date. He said the city's tiered rate structure would continue to price higher usage at higher tiers and that staff would pursue grants and partnerships to expand outreach and technician support for residents who need help finding leaks or designing turf replacement.
Council members asked how conservation measures would affect utility bills. Davenport said increases in wholesale district or electric costs (Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District and Rocky Mountain Power price movements) could drive future increases to city water rates, but conservation measures can reduce household bills even if rates rise. Council Member Whitelock asked that staff note that some rebate programs exclude hand-watered landscapes; Davenport agreed to clarify program eligibility on city webpages.
After the hearing and council discussion, Council Member Green moved to approve Ordinance 24-57; the motion passed 6-0. Staff said implementation will include grant applications, updated webpages and coordination with Jordan Valley programs; staff flagged that hiring a specialist would likely depend on grant funds.
