Discuss Water Conservation Alternatives

At the February 24 City Council meeting, the City Council discussed the City's topsoil specification and were informed that the Premium Topsoil Borrow specification no longer existed in MnDOT's 2014 Specifications Book.  For the 2015 construction season, the City Council upheld a recommendation from the EPB to accept material that met the Common Topsoil Borrow specification, which was most similar to the City's definition of topsoil regarding both organic matter and sand.  Staff also informed City Council that the EPB had recommended the City consider possible alternatives to topsoil that may also achieve the goal of water conservation.  The purpose of this case is to begin discussing what alternatives, if any, may be viable options to consider in lieu of topsoil.

Xeriscaping
This essentially means landscaping with drought tolerant plants, such as native grasses and wildflowers.  City Code already has provisions that would allow for this type of landscape, which requires very little water once it is established.  However, not everyone is comfortable with this type of yard. 

Smart Irrigation Systems
With advancements in technology, irrigation systems now are capable of being programmed according to the moisture needs of a yard as well as the moisture content within the soil.  This type of irrigation system, when set up correctly, can reduce the amount of water that is used over the summer months to keep a yard green.  Without a quality soil though, the water retention would not necessarily be as great as with topsoil.

Rain gardens and Gutter Catchments
Rain gardens emphasize infiltration but won't necessarily help decrease the demand for irrigation across a property.  Rain barrels and cisterns help re-use rain water for irrigation purposes but, at least on a residential lot, likely wouldn't result in a noticeable reduction in water demand.

Public Education
Developing a public education program on the importance of reducing the water demand for the landscape seems to be a critical component of a successful water conservation effort.  As has been discussed previously, even with topsoil, if an irrigation system isn't properly set up, it won't automatically result in water savings.  This should be the basis of any efforts by the City to encourage water conservation.

Rebates and Incentives
Developing a program that offers rebates and/or incentives for implementing water conservation strategies is another potential option.  This would be using a 'carrot' rather than a 'stick' and may be a more desirable approach.  This would involve identifying both the strategies that would be eligible (and how they would be verified) and how the program could be funded.

There are other possible concepts that might be worth researching.  The purpose of this case really is to begin the discussion on how the City could or should approach the concept of water conservation.  Each of the above concepts has both pros and cons that need to be considered as part of this review.  This discussion will eventually likely lead to a need to amend City Code but for now, Staff is hoping to engage the Board in a conceptual discussion about whether the City's desire to lower the demand on water usage (primarily in the summer months) should be accomplished through regulatory standards and/or through an educational campaign.

Based on discussion.