Conservation helps Cascade Water customers use less water

August 17, 2009 10:23 pm

Despite record high temperatures in July, residents and businesses within the Cascade Water Alliance service area used less water than during previous hot summers.

Officials credit better water conservation habits and a switch to high efficiency appliances and fixtures.

Cascade Water Alliance serves homes and businesses in Bellevue and elsewhere throughout the Eastside.

Effective conservation measures by local residents, such as using WaterSense labeled toilets, rain sensors, efficient showerheads and aerators, toilet leak detection and front loading clothes washers, have made a big difference, officials at the agency said.

“More people live here now than five years ago, when the summer was also extremely hot,” said Mike Brent, Cascade’s Water Resources Manager. “But because of great conservation practices by residents, water use was lower compared to the same period in 2004. The only way to explain it is that more people are using water wisely.”

The conservation efforts now “helps ensure a reliable water supply system and saves money for the homeowner,” Brent added.

Cascade adopted its first Six-Year Conservation Savings Goal in 2008 and achieved a savings of over 426,000 gallons of water per day, representing 42 percent of its 2008 – 2013 savings goal. All Cascade members are on track to meet their respective water conservation goals.

Conservation gains in the past year came from a variety of programs offered by Cascade to help residents conserve. These include rebates for high efficiency toilets and clothes washers, faucet aerator and showerhead installations, irrigation system audits and upgrades and more. Cascade partners with many other water and energy providers to educate consumers and offer tools for wise use of water. For details on these and other conservation programs Cascade offers, visit www.cascadewater.org.

Cascade Water Alliance is a non-profit corporation, comprised of the cities of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Issaquah and Tukwila, and Covington Water District, the Sammamish Plateau Water and Sewer District and Skyway Water and Sewer District.