The document summarizes recent changes to state legislative requirements affecting municipal water conservation in Texas. It outlines new required submittals like water use surveys, water loss audits, and water conservation plans. It also describes the Loss, Use and Conservation (LUC) application developed by the Texas Water Development Board to streamline reporting. Key bills passed in the 85th Texas Legislature that expanded reporting requirements and required water loss auditing training are also summarized. The document concludes with an overview of the Water Conservation Quantification Project conducted to assess implementation of recommended conservation strategies.
Item 8. Developing EPOC's PWB related to adaptation
State Legislative Changes Affecting Water Conservation
1. State Legislative Changes
Affecting Water Conservation
John T. Sutton
Municipal Water Conservation
Unless specifically noted, this presentation does not necessarily reflect
official Board positions or decisions.
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2. Required Submittals
• Water Use Survey
– March 1st
– All entities using surface water or groundwater for
municipal, industrial, power generation, or mining
purposes
• Water Loss Audit
– May 1st
– All retail water suppliers, once every five years
– Retail water suppliers with active financial assistance
with TWDB
– Retail water suppliers with more than 3,300
connections
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3. Required Submittals
• Water Conservation Plans
– Update every five years – May 1st
– Retail water suppliers with active financial assistance
with TWDB
– Retail water suppliers with 3,300 or more connections
– Entities with certain surface water rights
• Annual Conservation Reports
– May 1st
– Entities having active financial assistance with TWDB
– Retail water suppliers with 3,300 or more connections
– Entities with certain surface water rights
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5. A Solution
In 2013, the 83rd Texas Legislature appropriated
funds to:
• Streamline data collection
• Eliminate redundant data entry
• Improve data
• Make data accessible
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7. LUC Application & Reports
Water Loss & Conservation Data by Year
• by Entity
• by County
• by Region
• by Population
– <10,000
– 10,000 to 49,999
– 50,000 to 99,999
– >=100,000
• Statewide
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9. 85th Legislature
HB 1648 - Price; Seliger
Sec. 13.146. WATER CONSERVATION PLAN. The
commission shall require a retail public utility that
provides potable water service to 3,300 or more
connections to:
(1) submit to the ….
(2) designate a person as the water conservation
coordinator responsible for implementing the water
conservation plan; and
(3) identify, in writing, the water conservation
coordinator to the executive administrator of the board.
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10. 85th Legislature
HB 1648 – Water Conservation Coordinator
• September 11, 2017 - TCEQ stakeholder meeting. TCEQ
accepted informal comments through September 26.
• January 19, 2018 - File rule proposal w/ chief clerk
• February 7, 2018 - Proposed agenda
• February 23, 2018 - Texas Register publication
• February 23-March 26, 2018 - Public comment period
• March 20, 2018 - Public hearing
• July 25, 2018 - Adoption agenda
• August 23, 2018 - Adoption
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13. 85th Legislature
HB 1573 - Price; Creighton
SECTION 1. Section 16.0121, Water Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (i) and (j) to read as follows:
(i) The board by rule shall require the audits required by
Subsections (b) and (b-1) to be completed by a person trained
to conduct water loss auditing.
(j) The board shall make training on water loss auditing
available without charge from the board's website. The board
may provide training in person or by video or a functionally
similar and widely available medium. Training provided under
this subsection must include comprehensive knowledge of
water utility systems and terminology and any tools available
for analyzing audit results. In creating training materials, the
board may consider other organizations' training programs.
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14. 85th Legislature
HB 1573 – Water Loss Training
October 17, 2017 – TWDB authorized publication of
proposed amendments
November 3 – December 5, 2017 – Public comment
period
January 22, 2018 – Adoption
January 1, 2019 – Effective Date
www.twdb.texas.gov/conservation/resources/waterloss-resources.asp
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18. 85th Legislature
Rider 24
Quantifying and Installing Water Conservation Strategies.
Amounts appropriated above in Strategy A.3.1. Water
Conservation Education and Assistance, include $127,860 out
of the General Revenue Fund in fiscal year 2018 to be used for
the purpose of meeting the municipal water conservation
goals of the 2017 State Water Plan. The Water Development
Board shall use the funds to develop and manage a provider
contract to deliver the most effective and accurate process by
which to measure water conservation statewide. The Water
Development Board, by region, should quantify and install, on
a pro rata basis, sufficient municipal water conservation
strategies to meet the goals of the 2017 State Water Plan.
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19. 85th Legislature
Rider 24 –
Similar language to Rider 26 from previous
legislative session
Previous quantification study is finalized
www.twdb.texas.gov/conservation/doc/Statewide
WaterConservationQuantificationProject.pdf?d=37
40.4800000000005
Staff is developing scope for a RFA
Requested ideas and feedback from WCAC and
regional water planning chairs and consultants
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20. Water Conservation
Quantification Project
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In fall of 2016, the TWDB contracted with Averitt & Associates, Inc.
Task 1: Develop an approach to estimate the implementation of recommended municipal water
conservation strategies in the approved 2016 regional water plans.
Task 2: Prepare an assessment of the implementation of recommended municipal water
conservation strategies in the approved 2016 regional water plans.
Task 3: Quantitatively determine on an annual pro-rata basis the implementation of
recommended municipal water conservation strategies required to meet the water
conservation goals in the approved 2016 regional water plans.
Task 4: Incorporate the use of the TWDB’s Best Management Practices Guide as appropriate.
Task 5: Review the recommended municipal water conservation strategies in the
approved 2016 regional water plans.
Task 6: Review earlier studies and incorporate relevant findings as appropriate.
21. Water Conservation
Quantification Project
21
Project
• Engaged more than 230 water utilities to participate
• Interviewed and collected data from 170 utilities that ultimately
participated
• Measured and quantified more than 547 individual conservation
activities
• Produced 170 individual reports that included quantified activity
savings, water loss reduction savings, individual conservation goal
assessment, state water plan goal assessment, and suggested
activities that are attainable and meet state water plan goals in the
future
• Produced 15 regional reports that detail each region's progress in
meeting the recommended regional water plan conservation goals
• Produced one state report summarizing the results of the project
22. Water Conservation
Quantification Project
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Key Findings
• With the current conservation activities of 170 participating
water utilities in place— and without further enhancement—
these 170 utilities will:
– exceed their collective recommended 2020 water
conservation supply volume by 136,981 acre-feet per year.
– fall short of their 2050 volume by 6,409 acre-feet per year.
• One activity—an ordinance that permanently limits outdoor
watering to twice per week or less—is projected to save
112,223 acre-feet per year in 2020 by the 46 utilities that have
adopted it.
• Utilities with greater than 100,000 people average 6
measurable conservation activities, while utilities with less
than 50,000 average 2 measurable conservation activities.
23. Water Conservation
Quantification Project
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Recommendations
• Regional Water Planning Groups can play a vital role to
educate, but should not be expected to drive conservation
efforts.
• Wholesale water providers should function as key
stakeholders and drivers of monitoring, measuring, and
reporting conservation activity to their customer cities and
utilities.
• Consider using a stakeholder group to form a consensus on
savings estimates for activities being implemented
throughout Texas.
• Utilities should consider the suggested activities listed in
each of the individual reports issued as part of this project.
Water Use Survey - To collect water use and pumping data for planning purposes
Water Loss Audit – Useful to the utility and provided to the RWP group for use in considering water management strategies.
Loans – 386
3300 - 266
Total - 652
WCP includes a UP, which is a review of an entity's 5-year historic water use.
Annual Reports – additionally there is a 5-year implementation report for entities with surface water rights with TCEQ
Loan – 302
3300 – 192
SWR – 211
Total - 705
This shows the relationship between the required reports and plans.
Some examples include:
The relationship between the WCP and the RWP, water needs, water management strategies and BMPS.
Data from the WLA is used in AR and UP and setting 5 and 10-year goals for WCPs. It is also used to calculate water loss thresholds to review requests for financial assistance and if an entity needs to include funds to mitigate its water loss. Thresholds are also used in prioritizing SWIFT applications.
This visual also shows how the same data is often used in different reports.
We often heard from utilities that “I already gave you that info”. Also, depending on who was filling out the report, there often was discrepancies in data from one report to the next.
In 2013, the 83rd Texas Legislature appropriated funds to develop an online tool to:
Streamline the data collection for the TWDB’s water planning and conservation programs,
Eliminate redundant data entry for the required reporting documents,
Improve the data collection process and the quality and consistency of that data, and
Make the data accessible to the public online.
Reporting sequence – flow of data
5-year historic data will auto-populate in the utility profile
Entities with surface water rights should use TCEQ’s utility profile form and water conservation plan requirements. The data in the online utility profile should be helpful to you.
Examples of the types of reports that will be available.
We all know that water use and water loss can fluctuate from year to year for various reasons. And often we may be limiting our focus on a particular year. This is an example of a graph we are working to have available showing targets and goals and actual gpcd for total water use, residential water use and for water loss.
HB 1648 requires utilities with 3,300 or more connections to designate a water conservation coordinator. This legislation is based on a recommendation made by the WCAC.
Please note that this does not require revising your WCP.
The bill directs TCEQ to develop rules regarding designation of a coordinator.
What we will be doing is to ask for this info when a entity is filling out its AR form.
We will also be asking for this info on an entity's UP and WCP forms.
HB 1673 requires a WLA to be completed by a person trained to conduct a WLA. This legislation is also based on a recommendation made by the WCAC.
The bill also requires the board to make the training available for free from TWDB’s website. TWDB may also provide in person training or other widely available medium.
Administrative rules have been approved and are effective for WLA submitted after January 1, 2019.
We hope to have training available through our website over the next couple of months. Meanwhile we are providing a series of 4-hour workshops around the state that will meet the training requirement as well as receive 4 hours of TCEQ operators credit.
Info on the workshops can be found at…….
Training participants will receive an acknowledgement of training upon completion that they can down load and keep in their own files. TWDB will not be keeping records of training. When submitting the WLA this question will be added to the screen.
If yes, you will be asked to upload the acknowledgement of training.
If no, you will be directed to the training page.
This past session TWDB also received funds of about $128,000 to manage a contract to deliver the most effective and accurate process by which to measure water conservation statewide.
This project included:
Estimating the implementation of municipal water conservation strategies in the 2016 regional water plans.
Quantifying implementation of municipal water conservation strategies required to meet the conservation goals in the 2016 regional water plans.
170 utilities participated
Each utility received an individual report that included:
quantified activity savings,
water loss reduction savings,
individual conservation goal assessments,
state water plan goal assessment,
15 regional reports were produced that detailed each region's progress in meeting the recommended regional water plan conservation goals
And a state report summarized the results of the project
Participating utilities make up more than 17,000,000 in population by 2020, which is more than 58 percent of the state's total projected 2020 population.
Participating utilities make up 77.5 percent of the state's recommended 2020 municipal conservation goal (supply volume).
With the current conservation activities of 170 participating water utilities in place— and without further enhancement—Texas is projected to exceed its recommended 2020 water conservation supply volume by 95,947 acre-feet per year.
Nine out of 15 regional water planning areas surveyed are also projected to exceed their 2020 supply volumes.
These conservation savings estimates will fall short of the state's 2030 supply volume by 7,670 acre-feet per year if no other conservation activities are pursued.
With the current conservation activities of 170 participating water utilities in place— and without further enhancement—these 170 utilities are projected to exceed their collective recommended 2020 water conservation supply volume by 136,981 acre-feet per year.
Without further activity, these utilities are projected to exceed their collective 2040 supply volume by 44,409 acre-feet per year, but will fall short of their 2050 volume by 6,409 acre-feet per year.
Considering only participating utilities' supply volumes, 14 out of 15 regional water planning areas surveyed are projected to exceed their 2020 supply volumes.
Of those utilities surveyed, the state averages 3.2 measurable conservation activities performed per utility
Utilities with greater than 100,000 people average 5.9 measurable conservation activities, while utilities with less than 50,000 average 2.2 measurable conservation activities
One activity—an ordinance that permanently limits outdoor watering to twice per week or less—is projected to save 112,223 acre-feet per year in 2020 by the 46 utilities that have adopted it.
It seems that a better understanding of the importance of data on a local, regional, or statewide basis is being recognized, as well as the relationships that the data has to helping all of us ensure adequate water supplies for the future.