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<br />Meeting Water Demand Without Gunnison Water <br /> <br />o <br /> <br />a more advanced water conservation program than most other providers in the larger <br />metro area. If other area providers were included, the efficiency of water use in the <br />metro area, as measured by per capita consumption, would show even more room for <br />improvement. <br /> <br /> 190 <br />200 <br />150 <br />100 <br />50 <br />0 <br /> ~ ~ 'Uc: a x c: <br /> ., ., Sl c: 0 ~ 'CO Sl <br /> 'U > C 0:; ., 8 u <br /> :; c: "- ~ u ::E .= <br /> 0 ., o c: ~ <br /> a:> 0 u:; ::> "- <br /> ~ <br /> <br /> <br />2001 Single Family Residential Daily Per Capita Water Use. ", <br /> <br />As the above graph makes clear, Denver residents use considerably more water <br />per-capita than residents in several other southwestern cities. '50 In 2001, Denver's <br />single-family residential (SFR) use was 163 gallons per capita per day (gpcd). By <br />comparison, in the same year El Paso had a SFR use of 127 gpcd. Tucson had an even <br />lower SFR use figure: 112 gpcd. We focus on the residential sector, and SFR use in <br />particular because it represents a large percentage of urban water demand and cities <br />have more consistent accounting data available for this sector than for others. <br /> <br />Importantly, cities that have lower per capita use than Denver have even hot- <br />ter average temperatures and sometimes receive half as much precipitation as <br />Colorado's Front Range. Yet they still have achieved excellent water efficiency as a <br />result of aggressive price structures, rebates and incentives, and landscape regula- <br />tions. The gap between Denver's performance and cities that have pioneered better <br />water efficiency means Denver has many options left to explore. <br /> <br />Following the lead of these cutting-edge cities, it is entirely reasonable to <br />believe that the Denver area could reap conservation savings of a minimum of anoth- <br />er 100,000-150,000 AFA over the next several decades through several avenues. <br /> <br />b. Outdoor Conservation Savings <br /> <br />In the Denver metro area outdoor uses comprise about 54% of urban water <br />uses. '" Most of this water goes to irrigate bluegrass and other water-loving turf. '''' A <br />portion of this water can be conserved through more wide-spread use of urban <br />Xeriscape TM. <br /> <br />Xeriscaping offers a much lower water-using alternative to bluegrass lawns. <br />Xeriscape incorporates seven principles to promote quality landscapes, water conser- <br /> <br />Gunnison Basin Water <br /> <br />. 37 . <br /> <br />