KNOWING THE NEED—An iCentral water timer at Northwood Neighborhood Park in Thousand Oaks. The park district has reduced its consumption of the valuable resource by 15 percent since 2007, in part because of the device, which uses weather forecast on the Internet to determine the amount, frequency and time to irrigate. WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers Tasked with maintaining thousands of acres of lush park space in and around Thousand Oaks, the Conejo Recreation and Park District needs water—and lots of it.

But in response to a statewide drought in the late 2000s, the agency made a concerted effort to reduce its consumption of the increasingly valuable resource, and the latest data as of 2011 reveal that effort is paying off.

CRPD has reduced its overall water usage by 15 percent since 2007, saving millions of gallons of water in the process, according to a report presented to the board of directors on Jan. 19.

NO ORDINARY TIMER—The iControl machine can be adjusted remotely by staff members using the latest weather data to determine when to water and when not to. WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers The report, which was prepared by a summer intern from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, credited the park district’s increasing use of iCentral controllers in helping to reduce water consumption.

The satellite-based timers are connected to sprinkler systems and use real-time weather data from the Internet to determine when, how much and how often to water parks.

About 80 percent of the district’s 10,000 irrigation timers use iCentral technology. The district’s goal is to increase that to 95 percent within the next eight years.

But at a cost of $10,000 each, the district can only afford to buy two or three controllers a year.

“We’re trying to get the most current technology integrated into our watering system and that does take time and also additional funds,” said George Lange, chair of the park board. “But we’re addressing them as best we can and I think we’re doing a good job.”

Making progress

The district has implemented water conservation measures over the years, but especially since 2009, when the state declared an emergency drought and mandated that all public agencies reduce their water usage.

In response, CRPD installed low-volume plumbing fixtures and, in nonessential areas of parks, capped sprinkler heads and used wood chips for ground cover.

In four years, the district went from using 242 million gallons in a year to using 211 million gallons.

The district, which oversees 45 parks, including 11 with athletic fields, aims to cut its water consumption another 5 percent, or 3.45 million gallons, by 2020, for a total reduction of 20 percent.

“(Conservation’s) something we’ve been doing, and it’s been important to us for many years, but there always room for improvement and increasing our efficiency,” Lange said.

Jim Friedl, general manager, said conserving water isn’t only about saving money; it’s about contributing to the preservation of the state’s natural resources.

“When we’re not using water, then we don’t need, perhaps, the expensive infrastructure up and down the state to get the water out of the mountains and the Sierras to help us live in a desert,” Friedl said. “It’s just recognizing the fact that we need to be as responsible as we can be with our natural resources.”

He said it takes more than water to quench the thirst of Southern California.

Imagine the amount of electricity required to operate the numerous water pumps needed and the amount of energy required to produce and lay hundreds of miles of pipes in transporting millions of gallons of water from Northern to Southern California, Friedl said.

If Southern California demands more water, then more pipes, pumps and electricity must be produced, further taxing the environment.

But when park districts, cities and others do what they can to cut back on the amount of water they use, the aggregate effect can go a long way.

“The ripple effects are huge,” Friedl said.

Included in the intern’s report was an update to the district’s policies on the environment and water conservation, last updated in 2008 and 2009, respectively.

To determine if its overall practices are environmentally friendly, the park district took self-evaluation test created by the California Recreation and Park Districts.

The “report card” covered areas of administration, finance, facility and natural resource management, fleet maintenance and open space preservation.

CRPD scored 86 out of a possible 99 on the test. The association defined a score in the 71-90 range as very good but said districts should develop strategies to improve areas where they fall short.

Among the objectives cited in the conversation policy are installing ultra-low-use plumbing fixtures, planting more native and drought-tolerant plants and using recycled water from Las Vi rgenes Municipal Water District to irrigate parks.

Among the goals for improve- ment: providing public programs on environmental lifestyles, such as organic gardening and composting; having motion-activated hand dryers instead of paper towels in all restrooms; and orienting employees on the district’s environmental policy.

The district scored high with its use of biological or alterative rather than chemical pest control measures, its program to replace worn vehicles with alternative-fuel or hybrid vehicles, and its plan to acquire greenlands, streams and other open space for the protection of flora and fauna and erosion prevention.

Lange, a board member since 1990, said the report confirms the district is on the right track.

“(The report’s) an indication we’re headed in the right direction; we’re not where we want to be, but some of these things take time, especially when you’ve got a lot of parks and open space.”

To view the report, go to www.crpd.org/civica/filebank/blobdload.asp?BlobID=4962

--Story updated 12:16 p.m. Fri., Jan. 27, 2012