Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Conservation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Officials point to outdoor irrigation, rebates and meters as biggest conservation levers
Summary
Presenters recommended focusing conservation on outdoor residential use, offering rebates (up to $100) for smart irrigation controllers, landscape incentive payments to remove unused turf, and promoting water meters and tiered rates for municipal systems.
Speakers at the state water plan open house emphasized that outdoor residential irrigation is the largest near‑term conservation opportunity and outlined programs to reduce use. Heidi King, a conservation coordinator with the Division of Water Resources, said "the biggest opportunity for Utahns to conserve water is in their own backyard" and described education programs, landscape incentives to remove unused grass and a statewide rebate of up to $100 for smart irrigation controllers that use evapotranspiration data.
Nathan Lundstedt, director of the Division of Drinking Water, advised water systems to adopt meters, consider tiered water rates to discourage high use, and pursue master planning and water‑loss studies. "By having a meter that does promote conservation, people are more aware of their water use," Lundstedt said, and he noted that consolidating or regionalizing systems can improve resilience during drought and wildfire.
The presentation and Q&A repeatedly framed conservation and efficiency as the most cost‑effective ways to reduce future municipal and industrial demand.
