PERCENTAGE COMPARISONS
By expressing their water savings in percentages, we were able to show how much water each client was able to save from year to year. These figures showed the client that all their efforts really paid off. Clients were able to save money and meet the requests put forth by EBMUD. When the Water District says to reduce water consumption by 25%, the clients feel good when they can reduce by more than that. Success with Water Management encourages homeowners to save more, because the amount of money and water saved is so easy to see. Showing the percentage rates helps them to see that they can make a difference.
To give you an idea of how this works, let's use Customer 20 as an example. In 1987, his base year, he and his family used 807,912 gallons, in 1988 they used 504,761. The water use in 1988 shows a 37% savings from 1987. In 1989 they used 645,356 gallons, a 20% savings from 1987. In 1990 they used 530,833 gallons, a 34% savings from 1987. In 1991 they used 482,195 gallons, a 40% savings from 1987. In 1992 they used 480,109 gallons, a 40% savings from 1987. If you add these percentages up and divide by five (the total number of years being compared to 1987), you see that the average percentage of savings, for all five years, is 34%. This percentage means, that for five years of drought, Customer 20 was able to decrease their water consumption by 34%. The requirement set by EBMUD for 1988 was a 25% water reduction. They exceeded this amount by 9%, not only in 1988, but each subsequent year of drought thereafter.
When clients see the percentages of water saved during the drought, they understand that they deserve "thanks for a job well done". Our clients saved water not only in their own yards but in the community as well. Our Water Management Program shows that it is possible to use enough water and still have a reservoir of water on hand.
This is quite an accomplishment when you take into consideration the amount of water we use during the hot summer months. There are all kinds of events that are beyond our control; such as breaks in plumbing and irrigation systems, or small children who sometimes forget to turn the water off. But even with these kinds of occurrences, water management works. A basic understanding of how your irrigation system works can help you notice an irrigation break before the plants start dying and you're faced with a skyrocketing water bill. By using a Water Management Program each one of us can do his civil duty and save water, without having to change our entire life.
The 59 homes that we surveyed saved close to 20 million gallons of water by the end of the drought. This means that there are 20 million gallons of water in reserve. Imagine how much water there would be in a reservoir if 65% of all water consumers saved 25% of their water use every year for 6 years. We're talking about millions of gallons of water! Without Water Management this water would have simply run out into the streets, down the rain gutters into the bay and would have served no purpose whatsoever. As you look at our percentage sheets and graphs you will notice that water use is high in the summer and low in the winter. By barely irrigating in the winter, our clients were able to create a small scale reserve on their own. A balance is achieved in winter that allows for more water use in the summer. Even when they usied more water in the summer our clients were still able to keep their average percentage of consumption below what most districts were asking year round. Our percentages show that Water Management plays an important role in water conservation. Through a basic understanding of how to use water properly, the savings will be better every year.
HOW TO READ OUR FORM
This document shows the percentage of water saved per year, and the average savings for each client. Our percentages are compared to the base year and averaged to find the total percentage of savings for each client.
A. The base year and the approximate total gallons of water used for that year.
B. The approximate total gallons used for each year after the base year.
C. The percentage of savings for each year as compared to the base year.
D. The average annual savings of each year after the base year.
To give you an idea of how this works, we have used Customer 20 in Danville as an example. In 1987 (his base year), he and his family used 807,912 gallons, and in 1988 he and his family used 504,761 gallons. The water use in 1988 shows a 37% savings from 1987. In 1989 his family used 645,356 gallons, a 20% savings from 1987. In 1990 his family used 530,833 gallons, a 34% savings from 1987. In 1991 his family used 482,195 gallons, a 40% savings from 1987. In 1992 he and his family used 480,109 gallons, a 40% savings from 1987. If you add up all of these savings up and divide by 5 (the total number of years being compared to 1987), you will see that the average percentage of savings for all five years is 34%.
Percentage Comparison Forms
| Customer # 4 Alamo |
Approx. Total Gallons Used Per Year |
Percentage of Savings Compared to the Base Year |
Average Annual Savings Compated to the Base year |
|---|---|---|---|
401,504 gpy1987Base Year |
302,758 gpy1988 | 24 % | 28 % |
281,793 gpy1989 | 30 % | ||
321,521 gpy1990 | 34 % | ||
482,195 gpy1991 | 40 % | ||
480,109 gpy1992 | 40 % |
| Customer # 20 Blackhawk |
Approx. Total Gallons Used Per Year |
Percentage of Savings Compared to the Base Year |
Average Annual Savings Compated to the Base year |
|---|---|---|---|
807,912 gpy1987Base Year |
504,761 gpy1988 | 37 % | 34 % |
645,356 gpy1989 | 20 % | ||
530,833 gpy1990 | 34 % | ||
482,195 gpy1991 | 40 % | ||
480,109 gpy1992 | 40 % |
| Customer # 30 BLackhawk |
Approx. Total Gallons Used Per Year |
Percentage of Savings Compared to the Base Year |
Average Annual Savings Compated to the Base year |
|---|---|---|---|
1,160,116 gpy1987Base Year |
625,227 gpy1988 | 46 % | 47 % |
585,837 gpy1989 | 49 % | ||
gpy1990 | % | ||
gpy1991 | % | ||
gpy1992 | % |
| Customer # 32 Danville |
Approx. Total Gallons Used Per Year |
Percentage of Savings Compared to the Base Year |
Average Annual Savings Compated to the Base year |
|---|---|---|---|
260,101 gpy1987Base Year |
204,069 gpy1988 | 21 % | 41 % |
165,899 gpy1989 | 36 % | ||
157,567 gpy1990 | 39 % | ||
125,485 gpy1991 | 52 % | ||
105,318 gpy1992 | 59 % |
| Customer # 40 Danville |
Approx. Total Gallons Used Per Year |
Percentage of Savings Compared to the Base Year |
Average Annual Savings Compated to the Base year |
|---|---|---|---|
746,336 gpy1987Base Year |
485,015 gpy1988 | 35 % | 47 % |
362,595 gpy1989 | 51 % | ||
392,458 gpy1990 | 47 % | ||
333,422 gpy1991 | 55 % | ||
gpy1992 | % |
| Customer # 52 Walnut Creek |
Approx. Total Gallons Used Per Year |
Percentage of Savings Compared to the Base Year |
Average Annual Savings Compated to the Base year |
|---|---|---|---|
194,260 gpy1987Base Year |
129,925 gpy1988 | 33 % | 34 % |
136,663 gpy1989 | 30 % | ||
111,247 gpy1990 | 43 % | ||
145,701 gpy1991 | 25 % | ||
116,514 gpy1992 | 40 % |
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