By Greg Avery
Camera Staff Writer

Boulder gardeners with water-conserving drip-irrigation systems will get a longer time to water their flowers, trees, and shrubs under new rules the city will put in place this week.

On May 21, Boulder told property owners to cut outdoor water use, limiting them to two assigned watering days a week and to no more than 15 minutes in any one spot.

The Boulder Creek mountain watershed, the city's main source of drinking water, is suffering its worst drought in more than a century, leaving city officials worried that Boulder could face water shortages toward the end of the year if consumption isn't cut by 25 percent.

While its goal hasn't changed, the city will modify the original restrictions to allow users of drip systems to run them for two hours at a time on the property's assigned days, said Ned Williams, the city's utilities chief.

After the city announced its original restrictions, people with drip systems, which dole out a few gallons slowly and directly to each plant, called to complain.

They were trying to conserve water, they said, but drip systems work more slowly than common sprinklers. City water officials agreed.

"Fifteen minutes doesn't produce any significant water from a drip system," Williams said.

He said the complaints led him to worry that people would switch to more water-intensive sprinklers in an attempt to comply with the city's time limit and save their plants at the same time.

"It's better to have a drip system for two hours," Williams said.

Using a hose or sprinkler connected to a hose with water turned low will not count as a drip system, he said.

On Tuesday, the City Council is scheduled to vote on a proposed measure to codify the entire system of restrictions and penalties for violations.

The city will begin writing tickets for violations on Wednesday. They will range from $50 for a first offense to $300 for a third.

People have asked the city to alter its water restrictions in other ways, suggesting that it would be better to allow people to water bluegrass lawns and other plants longer but less frequently.

Last week, the city found that water use had plummeted since the restriction went into effect and surpassed city goals. That success makes the city unlikely to tinker with its rationing system.

"You can't constantly change a program that's trying to regulate 27,000 water accounts," said Chris Rudkin, city water quality coordinator.

Toward the end of summer, city water officials plan to meet with experts to determine whether a different system of water restrictions would work better if the drought continues into next year.

Contact Greg Avery at (303) 473-1307 or averyg@thedailycamera.com.

June 2, 2002

E-mail this story to a friend | Printer-friendly version