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City narrows conservation measures to 18; AMI and equity score in new selection criteria
Summary
Staff presented an updated water conservation strategic plan screening that narrows ~132 candidate measures to 18 for DSS analysis, adopting four scoring criteria (savings potential, equity, service-area match, additional benefits) and planning direct-install and rebate pilots.
Madeline Wood, the city’s water conservation analyst, told the Water Commission the conservation strategic plan update will re-evaluate measures for cost‑effectiveness, incorporate state water efficiency objectives and use AMI data to refine savings estimates.
Wood said the staff selection process added non‑financial criteria to the prior cost-effectiveness-only approach: water savings potential, diversity/equity, service-area match and additional service-area benefits (stormwater capture, habitat creation, energy savings). Each criterion carries equal weight in the selection.
The Measure Screening: staff and MWM screened a library of roughly 132 measures down to 18 for further modeling. New measures proposed for analysis include an in‑depth irrigation evaluation (Measure 15), a leak‑repair rebate (Measure 16), a direct‑install toilet retrofit targeted to income‑qualified customers (Measure 17) and pre‑rinse spray valves for food service establishments (Measure 18). Wood said the city is coordinating with the creeks division to stack incentives for sustainable lawn-to-rain‑garden conversions.
Rebates and market effects: commissioners cautioned that rebates can inadvertently increase contractors’ prices; one commissioner recounted paying thousands more because contractors factored rebates into bids. Wood and colleagues acknowledged the risk and noted the city will evaluate program design and potential safeguards.
AMI integration: MWM stressed AMI’s value for measuring actual post‑install savings at the account level and for targeting high‑use customers and leaks. “I can literally come up with the value of water savings instead of just assuming an industry standard,” MWM said.
Next steps: staff will feed the 18 measures into the DSS model to estimate costs, savings and cost‑effectiveness, produce a ranked list, advise required staffing and budget, and return with a draft strategic plan for commission review in spring 2026.
