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Riverbank briefed on state water-efficiency rules; city to pilot Flume household sensors
Summary
Public works staff summarized new state rules that lower indoor per-capita targets and presented a Flume pilot offering up to 100 free household sensors (with a refundable $30 activation) to collect disaggregated water-use data starting Jan.2025.
Riverbank — The City of Riverbank heard a technical briefing Sept. 10 on proposed state water-efficiency regulations and a planned pilot of household Flume sensors.
Cody Bridgewater, the city’s director of public works, told council the State Water Resources Control Board has set an indoor-use threshold of 55 gallons per capita per day (gpcd) now, falling to 47 gpcd in 2025 and to 42 gpcd by 2030. "They have set the threshold of 55 gallons per capita per day," Bridgewater said, summarizing the statewide indoor standard.
Bridgewater explained that the state’s approach assigns an objective-based total that combines residential indoor use, outdoor use, real water loss and commercial/industrial/institutional landscape consumption. He said Riverbank’s objective-based total is currently calculated at roughly 115 gallons per person per day, and that the city has requested a higher water-loss allowance based on recent audits.
To support local compliance and provide household-level insights, Bridgewater outlined a proposed pilot with Flume, a manufacturer of DIY water-monitoring devices. Flume would provide up to 100 devices free to Riverbank water customers chosen for geographic and demographic spread; participants must execute a data-sharing agreement and provide five years of historical monthly billing data. Bridgewater said Flume charges a $30 activation fee that is refunded when the device is installed and active.
Council members asked how the state determines outdoor budgets and raised privacy concerns about household data being stored in the cloud. Bridgewater acknowledged the concerns, described how the state’s aerial mapping estimates irrigable landscape and said the pilot could include city-installed devices for targeted sampling if voluntary interest is low.
Bridgewater said the city could tap future incentives, including credits for potable recycled water if the wastewater treatment plant is expanded. No policy vote occurred; staff said they will pursue the pilot timeline and follow up with details on enrollment and data agreements.
