Audit of Major Commercial & Irrigation Water Accounts

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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Audits of Major Commercial and Irrigation Water Accounts Town of Castle Rock with automatic shut otIs, and the toilets are all low flow. Laundry facilities and the kitchen do not have high efficiency equipment; however, the facility maintains a rigorous leak detection program out of necessity. The facility also houses the county courts and morgue. Indoor water use is linked to the number of inmates that are resident in the facility at any one time (see Attachment 4). Table 7 presents a comparison of water use to inmate residents for the winter months to help characterize facility water usage. Outdoor use is substantial for the nearly nine acres of irrigated plantings (see Attachment 5). The cost of outdoor water use for the combined years of 2004 and 2005 was over $165,000. If the water budget pricing were in place, the additional cost of water for this same period of time would have been over $450,000, with $134,000 coming in one month (based on July 2004 water use). Alternatives and Recommendations Indoor water use changes are difficult to evaluate given the nature of the water and facility use. Per capita water use is extremely high at the facility, which has been calculated after removing outdoor water use. Typical indoor water use per capita in Colorado ranges from about 70 to 120 gallons per day per person. The per capita water use at the Jail ranges from 4 to 10 times higher than these numbers. Note that the per capita water use calculations did not include any members of the administration and jailhouse security. Inclusion of these individuals would decrease the inmate per capita water use by some unknown factor. The Jail could substantially reduce its outdoor water use by improving its irrigation methods, the outdoor landscaping, or both. For example, an ET Controller could be purchased to manage up to 66 zones for between $4,000 and 8,000 including the labor to install and program the unit. Based on past water usage, the Jail could save $100,000 or more a year just in excess watering costs under current water pricing and substantially more if the water budget pricing is implemented. , The landscaping especially in the southern and western portions of the facility could be replaced with a mixture of hardscape and xeriscape plantings. In more remote locations around the perimeter of the Jail, SDI for small stands of pines or other low water use plantings could be installed for even less cost, by allowing the natural areas to develop without the aid of irrigation water. If all of the high water use areas were replaced, at a cost of $150,000 to $250,000, the payback for the Jail would occur in 2 to 4 years based on mixture of hardscape and xeriscape selected and water budget pricing. Chili's Restaurant (account 13820) Chili's Restaurant shown in Attachment 3 has one tap that provides water for all indoor uses and landscape irrigation. The facility is less than 5 years old and is fitted with low 3-5