California Water Board Backs Program for System Audits

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. (Jan. 5, 2016) – In an action approved by the State Water Resources Control Board, California-Nevada Section of the American Water Works Association (CA-NV AWWA) will receive $3.2 million over two years to help California’s water agencies produce validated system water audits. Accurate water audits are the first step in developing systematic water management programs to cut unnecessary losses of both water and revenue, according to experts. Legislation in 2014 and last year now require the approximately 450 urban water systems to submit validated water audits to the state’s Department of Water Resources (DWR), but proponents say that the utilities’ self interest in discovering and curbing unknown losses of water and money should make the program extremely popular. “Our goal is to work as a real partner with every water agency in California, meeting them at their level of understanding and providing the assistance and support they need to start on the path to the most economically efficient water management,” said Sue Mosburg, program manager at Sweetwater Authority and the immediate past chair of CA-NV AWWA. Over the past five years, Mosburg has worked with a team of other employees to learn and refine their water audits. She shared her agency’s experience as a featured speaker at the first North American Water Loss Conference. “Even after five years working on this, we still have more that we will learn about our own system. It is more complicated than it would seem because it depends on good analysis of so much different data. To do this right definitely requires a strong, committed team effort,” said Mosburg. In approving funding for the uncontested program, Water Board chair Felicia Marcus commented that, “It’s an important project. It’s a way to help in that next phase.” The Water Loss Control Collaborative that was approved for state funding is a 23-month program with multiple sessions of technical review and assistance. Partially modeled on a successful statewide water loss control program in Georgia, the program takes a two-pronged approach to meet utilities at their level of experience with the water loss control concepts. The Collaborative recognizes the efforts of California utilities that have already completed water audits following the American Water Works Association (AWWA) Manual M36 methodology, which incorporates the use of the AWWA Water Audit Software. Phase 1 is designed to accommodate new learners, early adopters and advanced practitioners, culminating in the universal submittal of validated AWWA M36 water audits by all retail urban water utilities in California. The learning model is built on a series of progressive steps that provide practical application and learning through reinforcement. About 130 California water agencies have previously submitted water audit results to California Urban Water Conservation Council (CUWCC), in compliance with a recognized Best Management Practice. According to Tim Worley, executive director of CA-NV AWWA, the program will help DWR meet its obligations under SB 555. “SB 555 calls on DWR to aid water utilities with training and technical assistance, and our program is tailor-made to meet that goal. The bill will also require DWR to collect and review hundreds of system water audits annually, and because this program will raise the quality of those audits, it will be a huge service to the Department,” Worley said.