Fact Sheet
WATER EFFICIENCY
Potable Water Demand Management
Short-Term and Long-Term Water Use Efficiency
Quick Facts
• Short-term demand management enables a response to temporary shortages
and supply fluctuations
• Planning for and responding to drought should be part of a utility’s management plan
• Demand Management plans and programs can lead to long-term reductions in
water use
Overview
Managing potable water supply and demand is central
Droughts
Droughts can affect water quality, operation and treat-
to water utility management. It consists of any strate-
ment costs, fire suppression capabilities, energy expenses,
gies adopted to reduce potable water consumption by
and interruptions in power. Planning for and responding
consumers after water is processed and treated. Utility
to drought should be part of a utility’s management plan.
demand management activities are based on short- and
Preparation activities might include prioritizing custom-
long-term needs, and should include both active and pas-
ers (like hospitals), establishing water supply trigger
sive conservation.
levels, and supplementing supply with reclaimed water.
Response activities can include identifying alternate water
Short-Term Demand Management
This focuses on enabling the utility to respond to tem-
supplies and documenting impacts.
Drought management resources include:
porary shortages or fluctuations in supply, especially
those associated with droughts or other short-term
emergencies.
• American Water Works Association (AWWA)
manual, M60 Drought Preparedness and Response
(AWWA 2011)
waterrf.org
• AWWA “Drought Resource Community” website
(AWWA 2016)
• AWWA Report, 2014 Water Shortage Preparedness
Survey (AWWA 2014)
•
California Department of Water Resources Urban
Drought Guidebook (CA DWR 2008) and California
Drought Contingency Plan (CA DWR 2010)
•
Colorado Water Conservation Board "Drought
Planning Toolbox" (CWCB 2016)
•
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Incident Action Checklist — Drought (EPA 2015)
and Drought Response and Recovery: A Basic
Guide for Water Utilities (EPA 2016a)
•
National Integrated Drought Information System
Website including the U.S. Drought Monitor
(NIDIS 2016)
•
Water Research Foundation (WRF) partnership
report, Managing Drought: Learning from Australia
(Turner et al. 2016)
•
Over recent decades, stress from
drought, depleted water sources,
population growth, and the infeasibility
of developing new sources has elevated
the importance of demand management.
WRF report, Drought Management in a Changing
Climate: Using Cost-Benefit Analysis to Assist
Drinking Water Utilities (Blue et al. 2015)
State and Federally Required Emergency Planning
The EPA recommends that a drought management plan
be included as part of an Emergency Response Plan
(ERP), which is required of community water systems
serving populations greater than 3,300 (EPA 2003).
Plans outline actions responding to threats such as major
natural disasters or catastrophic incidents. Some states
require utility drought preparedness plans, which should
be considered even if not required. Where droughts are
uncommon, utilities may be more vulnerable due to lack
of experience and planning.
Conservation Plans
Many states now require or recommend water systems to prepare conservation plans even though it is
not a federal requirement (Rashid et al. 2010). Political,
social, economic, and environmental factors will impact
which conservation programs make the most sense.
Implementing a variety of programs is recommended to
reach different customers.
Water Use Efficiency (WUE) Programs
Long-term WUE programs should be integrated with
other resource planning. Figure 1 shows a model that
seeks to quantify the benefits of conservation by placing
a value on each unit of water saved by estimating future
avoided costs, which can be compared with no-action
alternatives (Chesnutt et al. 2012). WUE strategies include
metering, progressive rate setting, water loss control
programs, conservation ordinances, and efficiency rebate
and replacement programs.
Metering
Metering the actual water use of each individual customer
can provide critical data to a utility. Utilities can employ
metered use data to set rates, compare projected versus
actual use, view peak and seasonal water use, and esti-
Long-Term Demand Management:
Conservation
This includes all the activities a utility takes that will
lead to a long-term reduction in water use. Potentially,
the need for facility expansion or new water source
acquisition can be reduced or eliminated. WRF’s report,
A Balanced Approach to Water Conservation, cites factors
that cause utilities to implement conservation measures,
such as anticipated water shortages or social responsibility (Chesnutt et al. 2012).
mate water losses. Conservation plans should include
goals for retrofitting old metering equipment and ensuring all new connections are metered and read frequently
(at least monthly).
Customer Conservation
Customer conservation strategies may be hardware-based or behavior-based, and can be encouraged
through educational, financial or regulatory incentives
(Vickers 2001). Rates can provide an incentive for customers to conserve, and utilities can offer financial incentives for customers to switch to water-efficient appliances.
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Water Efficiency
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Potable Water Demand Management
Conservation management resources include:
available to help utilities with drought and conservation
management programs and planning.
• Alliance for Water Efficiency resource library and
water conservation tracking tool (AWE 2016)
References
• AWWA Standard, G480-13 Water Conservation
Program Operation and Management (AWWA 2013)
•
EPA WaterSense® program (EPA 2016b)
•
WRF “Conservation Planning Models” (Chesnutt
et al. 2012b)
•
AWE (Alliance for Water Efficiency). 2016. AWE
Website. Accessed June 3, 2016. http://www.
allianceforwaterefficiency.org/.
AWWA. (American Water Works Association). 2011. M60
WRF reports, Water Conservation: Customer
Drought Preparedness and Response. Denver, Colo.:
Behavior and Effective Communications (Silva
American Water Works Association. http://www.awwa.
et al. 2010) and A Balanced Approach to Water
Conservation in Utility Planning (Chesnutt
et al. 2012a)
org/store/productdetail.aspx?productid=26750.
———. 2013. G480-13 Water Conservation Program
Operation Management. Denver, Colo.: American
Water Works Association. http://www.awwa.org/store/
Conclusion
productdetail.aspx?productid=35009354.
———. 2014. 2014 Water Shortage Preparedness Survey
Short-term and long-term demand management planning
Results. Denver, Colo.: American Water Works
is essential for responding to timely or emergency events,
Association. Accessed June 3, 2016. http://www.awwa.
and strategizing for conservation and the future. The Safe
org/portals/0/files/resources/water knowledge/rc
Drinking Water Act requires community water systems
drought/2014-awwa-water-shortage-preparedness-
serving populations greater than 3,000 to prepare or
revise an Emergency Response Plan. Many states now
survey-results.pdf.
———. 2016. “Drought: Resource Community.” Accessed
require or recommend water systems to prepare conser-
June 3, 2016. http://www.awwa.org/resourcestools/
vation plans (Rashid et al. 2010). A host of resources is
water-knowledge/drought.aspx.
Assess WUE Costs
Identify no-WUE Alternative
Utility Costs
Participant Costs
Alternative #1:
No Changes in Supply/Infrastructure
Investment
Assess no-WUE Costs
Increased Customer
Shortage Costs
Variable Operating
Costs to Serve
Customer Demand
Risks and Uncertainties
Impacts on Non-Participating Ratepayers
Compare Costs of WUE and
Assumed no-WUE Alternative
Increased Capital Costs
Social Impacts
Environmental Impacts
Risks and Uncertainties
Alternative #2:
Enlarge or Accelerate
Supply/Infrastructure
Investment
Variable Operating
Costs to Serve
Customer Demand
Environmental Costs
Risks and Uncertainties
Source: Chesnutt et al. 2012a
Figure 1. Conceptual framework for long-term water use efficiency investments
Water Efficiency
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Potable Water Demand Management
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Blue, J., R. Krop, N. Hiremath, C. Gilette, and J. Rooke.
Rashid, M., W. O. Maddaus, and M. L. Maddaus. 2010.
2015. Drought Management in a Changing Climate:
“Progress in U.S. water conservation planning and
Using Cost-Benefit Analyses to Assist Drinking Water
Utilities. Project #4546. Denver, Colo.: Water Research
Foundation.
implementation: 1990–2009.” Jour. AWWA, 102(6):
85–99.
Silva, T., D. Pape, R. Szoc, P. Mayer. 2010. Water
CA DWR (California Department of Water Resources).
2008. Urban Drought Guidebook. Sacramento, Calif.:
Department of Water Resources. Accessed June
3, 2016. http://www.water.ca.gov/pubs/planning/
Conservation: Customer Behavior and Effective
Communications. Project #4012. Denver, Colo.: Water
Research Foundation.
Turner, A., S. White, J. Chong, M. A. Dickinson, H. Cooley, K.
urban_drought_guidebook/urban_drought_
and Donnelly. 2016. Managing Drought: Learning from
guidebook_2008.pdf.
Australia. Project #4640. Prepared by the Alliance
———. 2010. California Drought Contingency Plan.
Sacramento, Calif.: Department of Water Resources.
for Water Efficiency, the Institute for Sustainable
Futures, University of Technology Sydney, the Pacific
Accessed June 3, 2016. http://drought.unl.edu/archive/
Institute for the Metropolitan Water District of
Plans/Drought/State/CA_2010.pdf.
Southern California, the San Francisco Public Utilities
Chesnutt, T., D. Pekelney, D. Holt, G. Fiske, J. A. Beecher,
D. Mitchell, and E. Rothstein. 2012a. A Balanced
Approach to Water Conservation in Utility Planning.
Project #4175. Denver, Colo.: Water Research
Commission, and the Water Research Foundation.
Oakland, Calif.: Pacific Institute.
Vickers, A. 2001. Handbook of Water Use and
Conservation. Amherst, Mass.: WaterPlow Press.
Foundation.
———. 2012b. “Conservation Planning Models.”
Project #4175. Denver, Colo.: Water Research
Foundation.
CWCB (Colorado Water Conservation Board). 2016.
“Drought Planning Toolbox.” Accessed June 3, 2016.
http://cwcb.state.co.us/technical-resources/droughtplanning-toolbox/Pages/main.aspx.
EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 2003. EPA
Enforcement Response Guidance: Section 1433 of the
Safe Drinking Water Act. Washington, D.C.: EPA Office
of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. https://
www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/documents/
enfresponseguide-section1433sdwa050803.pdf.
———. 2015. Incident Action Checklist — Drought. EPA
817-F-15-001. Accessed June 3, 2016. https://www.
epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-06/documents/
drought_0.pdf.
———. 2016a. Drought Response and Recovery: A
Basic Guide for Water Utilities. EPA 810-B-16-001.
Washington, D.C.: EPA Office of Water. Accessed
June 3, 2016. https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/
files/2016-03/documents/epa_drought_response_and_
recovery_guide.pdf.
———. 2016b. “WaterSense®.” Accessed June 3, 2016.
https://www3.epa.gov/watersense.
NIDIS (National Integrated Drought Information System).
2016. “U.S. Drought Portal.” Accessed June 3, 2016.
https://www.drought.gov/drought/.
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Potable Water Demand Management
Last updated April 2017