(A) Nothing in Resolution 69-2003 shall require or permit the use of the City of Albuquerque's San Juan-Chama Project allocations for purposes other than those specified in the City of Albuquerque's San Juan-Chama contract, interstate compacts, the San Juan-Chama Project Act, and the policies of the city's Water Resources Management Strategy.
(B) Water Conservation Task Force.
(1) A Water Conservation Task Force shall be established to study, hold hearings, make recommendations, and otherwise carry out the provisions of this resolution, and shall report to the City Council and Mayor no later than March 2004. The Task Force shall be comprised of a representative or delegate from each of the following organizations and offices:
(a) City of Albuquerque Water Resources Customer Advisory Committee;
(b) City of Albuquerque/County of Bernalillo Ground Water Protection Advisory Board;
(c) Albuquerque Metropolitan Parks Advisory Board;
(d) Albuquerque Public Schools Facilities, Planning and Construction Division;
(e) Bernalillo County;
(f) Village of Los Ranchos;
(g) University of New Mexico Department of Economics;
(h) University of New Mexico Water Resources Program;
(i) University of New Mexico Community and Regional Planning Program;
(j) The Executive Committee of the Middle Rio Grande Water Assembly;
(k) New Mexico Acequia Association;
(l) New Mexico Irrigation Association;
(m) American Society of Landscape Architects;
(n) Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce or the National 16 Association of Industrial and Office Properties;
(o) Association of General Contractors or Homebuilders Association of Central New Mexico;
(p) New Mexico Apartment Association;
(q) 1,000 Friends of New Mexico;
(r) Xeriscape Council of New Mexico;
(s) Sustainable Futures Task Force;
(t) A Hydrologist Certified in Drought Management; and
(u) A professional river advocate from a non-profit public 25 advocacy organization.
(2) The Task Force shall be staffed by the Water Conservation Program Officer of the Water Resources Management Program of the City Public Works Department or his or her designate, the Parks Management Division of the Parks and Recreation Department, the lead staff person for the Planned Growth Strategy Management Committee, and the Performance Improvement Program in the Office of Management and Budget in the Office of the Mayor.
(C) Establishing a New Water Conservation Goal.
(1) The Water Conservation Task Force shall develop water conservation measures to achieve an overall reduction of 40% as compared to the baseline water usage established between 1987 and 1993. The Task Force shall evaluate and recommend an appropriate time frame for reaching the new goal.
(2) Goal Measurement. The Water Conservation Task Force shall work with the Water Conservation program Officer to recommend methods of measuring water consumption.
(D) Equitable Distribution of Water Conservation Strategy. The Task Force shall balance the water conservation savings required from all customer classes including residential, commercial, institutional and industrial, proportional to percentage of total use, such that the water conservation measures requirements do not fall solely on the residential class.
(E) Water Budget. A water budget shall be developed by the Water Conservation Task Force in accordance with the contractual obligations policies and ordinances of the City of Albuquerque for the Water Service Area (Management Area) of the City of Albuquerque's water and wastewater utility. The water budget shall be a summary showing the balance in the hydrologic system between water supplies (inflow) to the system and water loss (outflow) from the system. The water budget shall be a reporting, planning, and management tool for the water resource system. Calculation of net gain or loss of water shall be made to indicate the sustainability of water use. The budget shall include recognition that the Management Area is one in a hierarchy of watershed management units that includes the Middle Rio Grande Basin. The water budget shall incorporate, but not be limited to, the following elements:
(1) Water supplies shall include, among others, the San Juan Chama allocation, the native Rio Grande water rights, reused effluent, and the aquifer.
(2) Water uses shall include, among others, current urban users with subcategories including (at a minimum) residential, industrial, golf courses, public facilities (other than golf courses), institutional and commercial users; future urban users within the same categories; and aquifer recharge. Water consumption from different sources, e.g., private wells, shall be separately quantified.
(3) The management goals of the water budget to be achieved include, but are not limited to, the following goals:
(a) "Safe yield" in which groundwater use does not exceed recharge,
(b) Sustainability in which water supplies are balanced with water consumption and does not involve "mining" the aquifer,
(c) Restoration of water levels in the aquifer,
(d) Protection of valued environmental resources of the region, including both the shallow and deep aquifer; the bosque and valley; the Rio Grande stream system; and the recreational, historical and cultural values; provided, however, that none of the City's San Juan-Chama project allocation shall be dedicated to accomplishing that goal,
(e) Preservation of water quality,
(f) Design and maintenance of public spaces that conserve water while maintaining and increasing public usefulness,
(g) Achievement of the community's policy objectives such as affordable housing, economic development and urban growth,
(h) To the extent possible, consistency with the regional budget and plan, and
(i) Coordination with adjacent jurisdictions.
The Water Conservation Task Force shall recommend a schedule for achieving the above goals. The work program for goals C.1 and C.2 shall begin when the San Juan-Chama surface water facility becomes operational and shall continue indefinitely into the future.
(4) The water budget should be a tool in which several water management scenarios are developed, tested, and offered for policy adoption. Periodic review and modification of the budget shall be scheduled.
(5) The Water Conservation Task Force will recognize that water supplies are highly variable, and shall prepare budget scenarios that reflect the reality of drought conditions.
(F) Review and prepare recommendations for amending the Subdivision and Development Process Manual Standards:
(1) The Mayor shall review land use regulatory methods and by January, 2004, recommend methods to connect applications for new development with the development's impact on available water supplies, integrating water conservation into urban development standards in the Subdivision Ordinance and the Development Process Manual, and other land use ordinances, policies, regulations and current practices. The review should include, but not be limited to, how to include maximizing permeability, minimizing directly connected impervious areas, integration of open space, narrowing streets, and integrating roadside swales. The review and subsequent recommendations will also include how to reduce mass grading in new developments to protect existing vegetation, maintain the native xeric landscape, and reduce watering to reestablish new landscape elements.
(2) The water conservation strategy shall include a review of new development applications regarding the impact of the development on available water supplies based upon a rating system to be developed that prioritizes development applications consistent with the City's goals and policies set forth in the City/County Comprehensive Plan and the Planned Growth Strategy. The Task Force will use the information obtained in the review to develop a recommended rating system by June, 2004.
(G) Evaluate and prepare recommendations for updating the Water Conservation Program. The Water Conservation Task Force shall evaluate the Long-Range Water Conservation Strategy and implementation measures. Recommendations shall be provided to guide the enhancement of the water conservation program. The evaluation shall address but not be limited to the following measures:
(1) Establishment of "per-customer" water budgets for new and existing consumers that vary by factors such as type of use, parcel size, number of fixtures, household size, and month of year. Modification of the summer surcharge system should be considered based on per-customer standards.
(2) Design regulations, planting restrictions, and irrigation system standards (such as contained in Sections 6-1-1-8, 6-1-1-9, and 6-1-1-10 ROA 1994) for existing and new development, parks, golf courses, and related uses. Special attention shall be given to soil preparation and design standards for the use of high water use turf in parks, playgrounds, and golf courses as allowed in the Water Conservation Landscaping and Water Waste Ordinance.
(3) Establishment of a water conservation program for private wells as set forth in the Water Conservation Landscaping and Water Waste Ordinance and authorized by Chapter 3-53-1 of the New Mexico State Statutes. The evaluation and subsequent recommendations, will include, but not be limited to: consideration of a permit system for new and existing private wells, metering for new and existing private wells, exemptions from the private well program based on a maximum water use standard, customer and system-wide reporting, rates and fees, summer use surcharges and water rights, coordination with the County of Bernalillo, the State of New Mexico and other public and private agencies and entities.
(4) Enhanced water conservation approaches including, but not limited to, the following possible approaches:
(a) Modifying the current incentive system to encourage retrofitting fixtures to low consumption devices, xeriscape landscaping, and other water conservation approaches, and encouraging more recycling options;
(b) Creating financial incentives in the rate structure for water conservation;
(c) Developing a "drought conditions" conservation program;
(d) Reviewing the current Water Conservation Strategy policy that encourages use of the shallow aquifer for non-potable purposes;
(e) Reviewing the effectiveness of the current water conservation program related to private wells tapping the deep aquifer;
(f) Promoting low consumption fixtures upon the resale of homes and businesses;
(g) Encouraging outdoor pool covers;
(h) Minimizing the percentage of parcel area to be landscaped with turf;
(i) Setting standards for evaporative cooler efficiency such as minimizing continuous "bleed-off" lines and "dump trays";
(j) Residential gray water systems;
(k) Rainwater and rooftop harvesting;
(l) Investigating and reporting upon the suitability and effectiveness of on-demand water heaters for new development by June 1, 2003;
(m) Investigating the possibility of limiting irrigation on an identified day or days of the week;
(n) Reviewing the possibility of establishing water conservation design standards for ponds and fountains exceeding 100 square feet;
(o) Phasing out the use of water-cooled ice machines and identifying an implementation period;
(p) Commercial carwash recycling standards;
(r) Requiring multiple-cycling of water in cooling towers and systems and identifying an implementation period;
(s) Submetering options, including requiring and/or providing incentives for irrigation-only meters for new and existing water users;
(t) Phasing out multiple head showers in new development and requiring and/or providing incentives to "swap out" such fixtures upon property resale; and
(u) Reviewing whether to strengthen existing regulations for timely repair of water leaks.
(5) Utility Rate Structures Evaluation and Report. The Water Conservation Task Force, in collaboration with the Public Works Department and Department of Finance and Administration, shall evaluate the existing water rate structure in comparison with other regional and southwestern municipalities to determine if alternative rate structures will promote water conservation. The evaluation and report shall be consistent with the current billing evaluation study, but shall incorporate the potential for water conservation incentives for low water users and alternative structures tiered structure with pricing incentives and penalties for high water users. The evaluation should include a provision to utilize a portion of the water conservation surcharges to fund incentives and rebates to promote further water conservation.
(6) Unaccounted for Water (UAW). The Mayor shall develop, and the Water Conservation Task Force shall review and make recommendations on, a UAW reduction plan by March 2004 to reduce unaccounted for water to less than 10% of overall water production. Effective upon adoption by the City Council, the Public Works Department shall implement the UAW reduction plan within five years. The UAW reduction plan shall include, at a minimum, reduction of well wash water, leak detection, meter repairs and maintenance, and other measures as necessary to achieve the goal.
(7) Water Conservation Plan for Municipal Services. The Mayor shall develop and the Water Conservation Task Force shall review and make recommendations on a Water Conservation Plan for Municipal Services by March 2004. The Water Conservation Plan for Municipal Services shall be consistent with the water conservation goal in Section (B) with the exception of the Parks and Recreation Department. For a period of ten years beginning January 2005, the Parks Management Division shall provide a plan to maintain the 2004 level of water usage as new parks are added by reducing the amount of turf at existing facilities or through irrigation efficiencies. The plan shall include the capital funding for renovation to remove existing turf. In addition, the Parks Management Division shall develop design standards for soil preparation, irrigation systems, weather monitoring and central control systems for all new parks and golf courses.
(8) Irrigation Management and Efficiency. The Mayor shall develop a licensing and certification program for landscape architects, landscape designers and maintenance companies, and other identified professionals in the landscape industry. The program shall be developed by working with the landscape industry and the Water Conservation Task Force and must be implemented by January 2005. The city in conjunction with local landscape professionals, plant suppliers and nurseries shall provide training and certification courses and materials to efficiently manage outdoor watering. As part of the training, licensing and certification program, the city shall provide weather measuring devices capable of monitoring relative humidity, temperature, and other parameters necessary to monitor and adapt to local weather conditions. The weather measuring devices shall be connected to or combined with irrigation timers to reduce water waste and match plant needs with irrigation application rates. The program shall be developed in a manner that promotes xeriscaping and water efficient landscaping and fosters a healthy native landscaping industry. The Task Force shall also address water efficiency measures relating to agricultural uses.
(H) New Sources of Water. The Water Conservation Task Force shall make recommendations to Council and the Administration identifying strategies to acquire or pursue new resources of water.
(I) Cooperation with other Jurisdictions. The water conservation program for the Management Area served by the city's water and wastewater utility recognizes that the area is within the Middle Rio Grande Basin. The Water Conservation Task Force shall address the following:
(1) Water consumption rates and conservation programs of other utilities within the Middle Rio Grande Basin shall be reviewed and evaluated;
(2) New Mexico State restrictions on gray water reuse shall be reviewed and evaluated. Suggestions for modifying these restrictions, if appropriate, shall be developed and communicated for inclusion in the lobbying programs of the City of Albuquerque;
(3) Alternatives to the surface storage of Middle Rio Grande Basin water that reduce evaporation loss shall be identified and evaluated;
(4) Adoption and implementation of the Middle Rio Grande Regional Water Plan, once completed; and
(5) Other intergovernmental coordination issues deemed by the task force to be relevant to water policy.
(J) Consistent with the Ground Water Protection Policy and Action Plan, the city and Bernalillo County should cooperate to preserve and protect the aquifer Regional Cooperation. Consistent with the Ground Water Protection Policy and Action Plan, the city and Bernalillo County should cooperate to preserve and protect the aquifer. The Mayor shall work cooperatively with Bernalillo County to develop a comprehensive water conservation program for the unincorporated areas of the county. The water conservation plan may provide for enforcement of water waste, private well metering and restrictions, well construction standards, and other water conservation measures adopted by the Bernalillo County Commission.
(K) Review of the Water Conservation Program Administration and recommend improvements. The Water Conservation Task Force shall review and recommend improvements to the performance of the City water conservation program since the adoption of the Long Range Water Conservation Strategy and Water Conservation Landscaping and Water Waste Ordinance in 1995. The review shall include, but not be limited to, the strengths and weaknesses of the program's implementation and administration, possible causes for the weaknesses, and recommendations to improve the administration of the program. The Task Force shall consider whether the water conservation program should be housed in a different department or agency to ensure independent operation and whether a "population based standard" should be created for enforcement staff levels.
(L) Report of the Water Conservation Task Force. A report summarizing the review and recommendations stipulated in Sections (C), (E), (G), (I) and (K) of this resolution shall be communicated to the Council by Wednesday, March 31, 2004. The report regarding the recommended rating system developed pursuant to Section (F)(2) herein shall be communicated to the Council by June 30, 2004.
(M) Financial Support for Water Conservation Task Force. Funding to support the work of the Water Conservation Task Force shall be allocated by the Council.
(Res. 40-1995, approved 3-24-95; Am. Res. 89-1996, approved 8-23-96; Am. Res. 31-1998, approved 3-5-98; Am. Res. 3-2001, approved 1-10-2001; Am. Res. 32-2003, approved 5-25-03; Am. Res. 69-2003, 6-19-03)