8/28/2008 11:34:00 PM Chino Valley looks into stiff water code
Jo. L. Keener/The Daily Courier
The Town of Chino Valley is considering severely limiting outside water use, especially for lawns as seen here, under a proposed new water conservation code.
CHINO VALLEY - Operating with a groundwater shortage, the Town of Chino Valley is proactively looking for alternatives for conserving its freshwater supply.
In early August, Mark Holmes, Chino Valley's water resources director, gave the Town Council a proposed ordinance outlining methods that the town could save water while accounting for future commercial and residential growth.
Holmes' plan focuses on working toward safe yield, or recharging as much water into the Big Chino Aquifer as the town removes.
To get comments from the public about his plan, the town created four subcommittees made up of local citizens; nursery workers; landscape architects, developers and contractors and one council member.
These groups are conducting a series of meetings over the next six months, delving into their concerns with the ordinance in hopes of reaching common ground. Afterwards, the subcommittees will report their findings to the council.
The town will publicly post notices of each of the subcommittees' meetings on its website at www.chinoaz.net.
"This is a council-driven decision," Holmes said. "We will look for council direction."
Holmes said his goal is to reach a ratio of seven to nine housing units per acre-foot of water used. He would primarily do this by cutting off water for outdoor uses.
To achieve Holmes' goals, town administrators will likely suggest requiring developers to install rainwater-harvesting equipment on all new homes within town limits.
A developer then could either incorporate a harvesting system that covers an entire subdivision or get individual homeowners to put in the systems themselves. Residents would take the rainwater from their catchment basins, rather than their spigots, to water lawns and gardens.
Among other methods, Holmes is suggesting that the town require every new housing development to participate in a water-retention program.
Essentially, engineers would create a host of retention basins around town that collect and retain rainfall. Each developer who buys into the program then would have a select percentage of that water for his or her own purposes.
Another way to promote "real water savings," Holmes said, is for the town to provide incentives for turf removal, something the City of Prescott has already started doing.
The town would require residents to plant only drought-tolerant plants that need limited water.
Over the next 50 years, Holmes said, the only way for development to continue in Chino Valley is to employ water conservation techniques, along with major extensions of water and sewer lines - even though exempt wells will remain untouched.
He believes his plan is a "win-win" for the environment and the economy and will positively change residents' water-use behaviors.
"If a majority of these ideas can be implemented, we can achieve water sustainability, and the economy will be stimulated and positively influenced," Holmes said.
While those in the development community say they want to conserve water, they are concerned that the town may go too far with its restrictions and enforcement.
For example, the policy would restrict or limit outside water use for landscaping, recreational purposes and washing vehicles - restrictions that are new to the public. Today, the only limitation to residents is the price of water.
"Any move towards conservation is the right and responsible thing to do," said Travis Bard, a Realtor with Windemere Real Estate and a Chino Valley School Board member. "The challenge we have is making that move with the right program and the right motivation.
"My concern is we're being moved in this direction by external forces (down-stream water users, Salt River Project, environmental groups) instead of trying to come up with a solution to what we see locally as the issue."
Charlie Arnold, operations manager for the Bright Star subdivision off East Road 2 North, said his community of 177 homes has gotten smarter and more realistic with water conservation. But he thinks it will be tough to follow the town's code the way it is presently written.
"Bright Star and our builders believe heavily in water conservation and smart growth," Arnold said. "But we feel that the town's concept will require a lot of discussion among the stakeholders to find an answer that promotes the future while we are able to protect our past."
Sandy Griffis, executive director of the Yavapai County Contractors Association, said the code is "one of the strictest and most stringent proposed water ordinances that has appeared on the horizon in a long time."
"We are supportive of equitable changes when they provide continued capacity and opportunities for growth," said Griffis, who commended the council's openness to listen to all sides involved in the issue. "And they cannot be severely mandated to cause a community to become endangered."
Chino Valley is the largest community sitting within the boundaries of the Prescott Active Management Area, or AMA, but the City of Prescott holds the rights to most of the water lying underneath it.
The AMA is currently experiencing an overdraft of 11,250 acre-feet per year. More than 4,000 exempt well users, the town, the City of Prescott, several private water companies, irrigation water users and the Chino Valley Irrigation District all pump from the same water supply.
Holmes said the Town of Chino Valley uses about 7,000 acre-feet annually. But based on 5 percent growth with a water use of 130 gallons per person per day while serving only new residents, the town would need about 10,000 acre-feet by 2058.
He added that this means it is harder for Chino Valley to create a sustainable water-use environment.
In response, the town is still pursuing importing water from the Big Chino Aquifer through a pipeline.
On May 10, 2007, the town council approved a resolution stipulating that any water the town imported from outside the Prescott AMA could only be for inside of a home or business, rather than for watering lawns or gardens.
Holmes said that since anywhere from 40 to 60 percent of the town's groundwater is used for outside purposes, it is crucial to conserve as much of this water as possible.
For more information about the town's subcommittees or to read Holmes' plan, visit at www.chinoaz.net and click on water resources department under departments/divisions at the top of the home page, or call 636-7140.
Contact the reporter at dcook@prescottaz.com
Reader Comments
Posted: Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Article comment by:
Anonymous
In some parts of the world, people are only able to use 5 gallons of water per day per person. Rainwater catchment for all uses becomes somewhat attainable at that level. However, we have a very serious problem here. Even if we weren't in a drought, we only get significant rain twice a year. At the end of summer, when you are done watering for the season, and during the winter, when you don't need to water so much outdoors. Calculate sometime how much rainwater you would have to save from July through March to be able to water outdoors April through June. You might be surprised. The cities will have to change their codes to allow for larger cisterns to catch enough water for anyone to have anything that resembles a yard! Now, if you really want to get a shock, consider the reduction in recharge volume if just one out of every three people captured and stored the rainwater from their property. Now you have an even bigger problem. After all, who really owns the rain??
Posted: Saturday, August 30, 2008
Article comment by:
Nancy Shelton
You know what happens when you put horticulture and development interests on a committee to develop conservation recommendations? You get a very WEAK conservation plan. The exact thing has happened with the City of Prescott and with the Upper Verde River Watershed Protection Coalition.
Posted: Saturday, August 30, 2008
Article comment by:
John Barber
If you think that Chino Valley's proposed restrictions are severe, check out the Australian State of Queensland's water restrictions.
http://www.qwc.qld.gov.au/
If we don't get our water use under control, we'll be looking at these restrictions.
Posted: Friday, August 29, 2008
Article comment by:
Ron R Harvey
It only takes one good rain to fill up a cistern, even in a drought, and that amounts to hundreds of gallons per home! That sounds pretty significant to me.
Every little improvement helps.
Posted: Friday, August 29, 2008
Article comment by:
You Go Chino Valley
Interesting that Chino Valley appears to be so concerned about water conservation and removal of lawns. The brand new Walgreens store has a good size section of grass along Hwy 89 that serves no purpose other than for decoration. That lawn area could have easily been denied in Chino's plan review process. I'm all for taking preventative measures to conserve water. But take note citizens, these proposed rules are not being set up to ensure safe yield is achieved or there is water for current residents and their future generations. It is clearly being considered to allow for more growth. Hmmm...more growth, doesn't that mean even more water will be needed? Looks to me like every drop of water existing residents save, will be used so more and more homes can be built! The good news is, forbiding outdoor water use will more than likely result in turning Chino into to a completely undesirable area to live. Who in their right mind would want to live in a place that makes it illegal to use outdoor water? Chances are people will be leaving Chino in droves, rather than flocking to move there. As for the rain catchment systems...sounds like a good idea, but there is one huge problem. We are in a drought; there isn't enough rain to bother saving. Any rain we get is needed in the ground right a way. Look around folks, there are hundreds of dead trees and shrubs covering the hillsides and valleys due to lack of rain. They propose putting in detention basins all over. Hello...the Health Dept is warning everyone not to have standing water on their property to avoid mosquito infestation. Maybe Chino would be awarded the dubious honor of being the West Nile Virus capital of Arizona. That would surely attract new residents! Way to go Chino! Keep twisting and turning. Eventually you and all the other towns will come up with a good plan to use up every drop of water on new homes.
