REPORT TO

MAYOR AND COUNCIL

PRESENTED: MAY 25, 2009 - SPECIAL MEETING REPORT: 09-72

FROM: ENGINEERING DIVISION FILE: 5280-23/10
SUBJECT: 2008 WATER WISE PROGRAM SUMMARY AND 2009 PLANNED ACTIVITIES

RECOMMENDATION:
That Council receive the “2008 Water Wise Program Summary and 2009 Planned Activities”
report for information.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Township of Langley’s annual Water Wise program was implemented in 2002. In 2008, the
Water Wise program included a Water Conservation Challenge pilot project, which used
community-based social marketing (CBSM) principles to promote sustainable lawn watering
practice in the Walnut Grove area. Results showed that those participating households that
reported excessive lawn watering pre-pilot were able to significantly reduce their lawn watering
time per week post-pilot.

Given the success of the pilot, the 2009 Water Wise program will return to Walnut Grove with an
expanded Water Conservation Challenge. The Water Wise door-to-door team will ask
households to pledge to practice sustainable lawn watering, either by choosing to not water their
lawns at all (i.e. letting their lawn ‘go golden’) or by limiting their lawn watering to 1 hour or 1
inch per week. . To help meet the challenge, participating households may be provided with a
rain gauge to measure rainfall and a hose timer to automatically shut-off their water after one
hour. A follow-up telephone survey will document changes in lawn watering behaviour.

The Walnut Grove challenge will be complemented by an extensive Township-wide community

outreach program consisting of public workshops and forums, presence at community events,
media announcements, and information provided on Township web pages. The Township will
continue to offer rain barrels, as well as indoor and outdoor water conservation kits at a
subsidized cost to Township residents. Rural residents on private well will also be encouraged
to become members of the Private Well Network.

NB To enable sports fields to function effectively it is necessary to continue to water them except during
those times when extreme water restrictions are in place. Sports fields are constructed on sand bases so
that they drain quickly and computerized systems are used to irrigate them responsibly. This information
is provided since periodically, Council may hear directly from residents about their concern if their lawns
are golden, and our soccer fields are green.

PURPOSE:
The purpose of this report is to provide Council with a summary of the 2008 Water Wise
program and planned activities for the 2009 Water Wise program.
2008 WATER WISE PROGRAM SUMMARY AND 2009 PLANNED ACTIVITIES
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BACKGROUND/HISTORY:
Water Wise was launched in 2002 as part of the Water Resources Management Strategy, and
includes an innovative public outreach program aimed at educating homeowners about
groundwater and what they can do to protect this valuable community resource. The Langley
Environmental Partners Society (LEPS) and the Township work closely to implement this
program which includes door-to-door visits, forums, workshops and subsidized initiatives. Since
2002, the Water Wise team has visited more than 10,200 homes over the Hopington and
Brookswood aquifers and in Aldergrove and Fort Langley.

In 2008, the door-to-door program took place in a select area of Walnut Grove and included a
Water Conservation Challenge pilot project, which used principles of community-based social
marketing (CBSM) to promote sustainable lawn watering practice. Lawn watering was targeted
because it typically comprises 40 percent of residential water use in the summer, which is also
when demand for water is highest. The pilot project was presented to residents as part of the
Our New Environment corporate initiative, which emphasizes the importance of individual
actions in support of sustainability.

DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
Water Wise 2008, Water Conservation Challenge Pilot Project

The Water Conservation Challenge asked participating households to pledge to practice

sustainable lawn watering, which recognizes that a healthy lawn only requires 1 inch or 1 hour
of watering, once per week. Provided to residents were a rain gauge to measure the amount of
rainfall their lawn was receiving on a weekly basis and a hose timer to automatically shut off
their sprinkler after a specified time period. A telephone survey conducted in the fall of 2008
was used to assess the post-pilot project lawn sprinkling practices.

Key results of the 2008 pilot project are presented below.

• Of the 500 households in the pilot project study area, 195 households chose to
participate.
• 51% of participating households reported watering their lawn rarely or never, 31%
reported sustainable lawn watering, and 18% reported unsustainable or excessive lawn
watering (i.e. lawn watering exceeding 1 hour per week).
• For those households reporting excessive lawn watering, average weekly lawn watering
time was reduced from 145 minutes to 75 minutes as a result of the pilot project, which
equates to an average weekly water use reduction of 1,330 litres per household.
• Use of the rain gage and hose timer provided to participant households was limited.
Reasons cited by residents included ‘lack of understanding’, ‘forgot to use’, and ‘too
much fuss’.

Based on the results of the Water Conservation Challenge pilot project, incorporating CBSM
principles into Water Wise was deemed a positive development that improved the effectiveness
of the program.

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2008 WATER WISE PROGRAM SUMMARY AND 2009 PLANNED ACTIVITIES
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Water Wise 2009

Water Wise will return to a new area in Walnut Grove this summer and will include an expanded
Water Conservation Challenge that encourages sustainable lawn watering using CBSM
principles. Based on the results of the pilot project, this year’s challenge will encourage ‘letting
your lawn go golden’ (i.e. not watering your lawn) as the most sustainable behaviour. If
households prefer to water, they will be asked to pledge to limit lawn watering to 1 hour, once
per week, or 1 inch per week, as necessary. Rain gauges and hose timers will only be provided
to those households exhibiting a strong interest in using the tools to meet the challenge.
Participating households will be provided a lawn sign to identify their participation and a hose
bib to remind them of the challenge. A visible sticker on the lawn sign will identify those
households pledging to ‘let their lawns go golden’. A follow-up telephone survey in the fall will
again be used to evaluate the program.

The door-to-door program will be augmented with several broader outreach initiatives including:
ƒ promoting water conservation through the media, presence at public events and
presentations, Township pages, and press releases,
ƒ delivering water conservation education in Walnut Grove elementary and secondary
schools through workshops and theatre production, and
ƒ delivering two “Well Wise and Septic Sense” public workshops.

Applicable Policies:
Water Wise is a primary component of the Township’s Water Resources Management Strategy,
which aims to protect Langley’s valuable water resources.

Community Implications
Incorporating CBSM principles into the delivery of the Water Wise program helps the Township
continue to be a leader in promoting water conservation and groundwater protection with its
residents.

Financial Implications
The 2009 budget for the Water Wise public outreach and education program implemented by
LEPS is $51,195, which is consistent with previous years. Note: this does not include costs for
subsidized rain barrels and water conservation kits, re-printing of ‘A Resident’s Guide to
Groundwater’ booklet, or the toilet rebate program.

As in 2008, the 2009 Water Conservation Challenge provides a free rain gage and hose timer to
households that pledge to practice sustainable lawn watering and show a strong interest in
using these tools. Based on the results of the pilot project, a conservative analysis finds the
cost of providing these tools is recovered within two years through water savings.

Respectfully submitted,

Mark Sloat
ENVIRONMENTAL COORDINATOR II
for
ENGINEERING DIVISION

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