USF Reacts to New CA Regulations on Water Usage

USF Reacts to New CA Regulations on Water Usage

By: Andrew Noerr

            The University of San Francisco has set new goals to significantly reduce water usage on campus in the midst of the current drought that continues to plague California. USF plans on enacting many changes in regards to its water consumption that will apply to many on-campus facilities and sites that require irrigation watering.

            According to a report created by Facilities Management with the purpose of addressing water conservation on campus, USF used 72.12 million gallons of water on the Hilltop campus, and 12 million gallons of that were applied to irrigation. Also, the university used 33 million gallons of water combined in McLaren Hall, Phelan Hall, Malloy Hall, and the University Center. Seven million gallons of water were utilized in Koret as well.

            With this, USF will implement new policies concerning water conservation that are in reaction to the new Mandatory Water Conservation Regulations that were announced by the California State Water Resources Board on July 29. The regulations are mainly directed toward urban water use, and they will be enforced for 270 days. In addition to all this, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is asking for a 10% voluntary water usage reduction to help address the current drought.

            According to the aforementioned report, in order to comply with the new regulations, USF is expected to not apply any potable, meaning drinkable, water to any sidewalks or driveways. Also, the university cannot let any water leak into non-irrigated areas. All wash hoses are required to have shut off nozzles, and fountains that don’t use potable water must contain the proper technology that allows for recirculation of the water.

USF also intends to make numerous changes to its on-campus facilities in order to satisfy the request made by the SFPUC. The university has agreed to impose new practices that it thinks will lead to the school being able to fulfill the goal of reducing overall water usage by 10%.

            First, the report from Facilities Management states that USF has reduced the amount of time that is dedicated to watering irrigation by ten percent. It specifically notes that reducing irrigation watering times will lead to a 3.3 million gallon reduction of water over time. Also, the university has already installed low-flow restroom fixtures such as low-flow toilets, faucets, and showers to many bathrooms on-campus, especially in the student housing units.

According to information listed on the website of the National Resources Defense Council, an organization that is lauded for its environmental activism in the United States, low-flow toilets use only 1.6 gallons of water per flush or less, and low-flow faucets and showers use 2.5 gallons per minute or less. Even with the low flow fixtures on campus, water conservation notices have been posted in all of the restrooms in the student dorms.

            However, it remains to be seen if students will support the efforts being made by USF to ration water. Joseph Murphy, Environmental Safety Manager at USF, expressed skepticism that students will be able to change their daily habits in the wake of the current drought.

            “Students are the 800-pound gorilla in the equation,” Murphy stated. “Landscaping is not as difficult to change. It’s the human behavior changes that will make it hard to comply. Changing human behavior is the greatest challenge.”

             Still, according to the Facilities Management report, USF is currently working with on-campus housing and Koret to find ways to further decrease water usage. USF hopes to install water metering devices for all of the showers in Koret and other on-campus facilities. These metering devices would show how much hot water is being used per shower. Also, the report indicates that Facilities Management is investigating the possibility of installing alternative filtration equipment in the Koret pool.

            If all goes well in enacting the current goals set forth by the Facilities Management in rationing water, the next step would be to pursue using recycled water as a source of non-potable water that can be used at USF. However, USF has experienced difficulties in its pursuit of shifting from potable water to recycled water for on-campus usage.

            “The City of San Francisco's regulations and permit process for allowing the use of recycled water are extremely complicated and cumbersome,” Michael London, Assistant Vice President of Facilities Management, admitted in an e-mail. “It will take a considerable amount of time to figure our pathway through them.”

            As listed on the SFPUC website, San Francisco’s Recycled Water Ordinance that was enacted in 1991 requires property owners in certain designated areas of the city to use recycled water if the property contains 40,000 square feet or more of new construction or alterations to the property, or if the property has 10,000 square feet or more of landscaping. The University of San Francisco is not located in any of the designated areas that have to use recycled water as listed by the SFPUC, but Facilities Management has still stated a desire to utilize recycled water in the future.

            However, if further restrictions are imposed in San Francisco, the report shows that USF will raise its efforts to conserve water by recommending shower flow restrictions on campus. In the meantime, the school is hoping that the combination of changes to its landscaping practices and the efforts to conserve water by the students living in the dorms will allow it to comply with the new Mandatory Water Conservation Regulations in California.