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<br />B. Low water use landscapes and efficient irrigation: (Continued) <br /> <br />The most effective irrigation management tool is the mandatory metering of all <br />residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the water system. Metering of <br />all parks and open space water usage has also be included in the metering <br />program. Pueblo has long recognized the use of mandatory metering as a way to <br />enforce and educate Pueblo's citizens and water customers in the efficient use of <br />their water. In the early 1950's, Pueblo's citizens enjoyed the uncontrolled use of <br />their water. Everyone paid a flat rate for their water no matter how much they <br />poured onto their lawns. <br /> <br />The mid 1950's and early 1960's brought change to the water customers in Pueblo. <br />The two separate water boards (north side and south side) merged their two <br />distribution systems and formed a single, five member Board to manage the entire <br />system. This consolidation brought new ideas on how to run the system and one of <br />those ideas was the mandatory metering of all residential customers, with metering <br />of commercial and industrial customers to follow. Just the discussion of the <br />metering plans had its effect. Customers began to cut back on their use of water <br />knowing that soon they would be charged for their actual water usage. <br /> <br />From the mid 1960's to today Pueblo's water customers have adapted to the Board's <br />policy of mandatory metering. This metering of Pueblo's water supply truly <br />provided Pueblo with a new water supply source. In fact, a source large enough to <br />fill Pueblo's 11,500 acre foot Clear Creek Reservoir. <br /> <br />The figures below illustrate the savings realized through the mandatory metering <br />program of the Pueblo Water Board: <br /> <br />Years <br /> <br />Avg. Population <br />(Thousands) <br /> <br />Annual Water usage <br />(Billions of Ilallons) <br /> <br />Daily Water usage <br />(bJaJ365 davs=ner canita) <br /> <br />1950-1954 <br />1955-1960 <br />1961-1997 <br /> <br />69,168 <br />84,309 <br />99,619 <br /> <br />8,521,290,000 <br />7,786,573,000 <br />8,168,012,000 <br /> <br />338.27 gal/day/capita <br />253.47 gal/day/capita <br />224.61 gal/day/capita <br /> <br />Since the 1950's the per capita water usage has decreased by 113.66 gal. per day. <br />Pueblo's 1997 population was 102,723. This population x 113.66 gal.lday equals <br />11,675,496.18 gal.lday of water saved which can be traced directly to the mandatory <br />metering program. Yearly savings are estimated at 4,261,556,106 gallons or 13,078 <br />acre feet of water per year. Mandatory metering truly produced a new source of <br />water for Pueblo. <br /> <br />-15- <br />