Jordan Water Conservancy District
Leading the way in water conservation
Jordan Valley is the largest municipal water supplier in Utah, with 90% of its municipal water delivered on a wholesale basis to cities and water districts and 10% on a retail basis to unincorporated areas of Salt Lake County. Jordan Valley also delivers untreated water to irrigators in Salt Lake and Utah Counties to meet commitments under irrigation exchanges. With all the focus on water and Jordan Valley's high profile in promoting water conservation, the district chose a Baseline two-wire and soil moisture sensing system to control irrigation of landscapes around their corporate offices.
By grouping zones into hydrozones (similar watering profiles) and controlling each hydrozone with an advanced soil moisture sensor, the zones get only the water they need when they need it. The results were astounding. Watering and management savings were achieved using Baseline's proprietary moisture sensing control with "let the lawn water itself" technology.
While their job is to sell water, Jordan valley has taken the conservation mandate seriously. Paula and her staff have helped spearhead the Utah statewide "Slow The Flow" campaign, built demonstration gardens, developed a residential audit program and have been featured in many radio and television interviews.
As part of their commitment to be a showcase of water saving technologies, JVWC has also installed an ET based system. In the time it took to just take the introduction ET class, the Baseline system was installed and operational. In side by side comparisons, the Baseline system has watered less than ET and has done a better job at keeping the landscape in prime condition. "It took us two years and some consultants to get the ET running and we still don't have it working well."
The high mountain desert climate of the Salt Lake Valley creates a unique challenge to irrigators. Long periods of little moisture punctuated with isolated downpours create a challenging number of micro climates within just a few miles. "It can be sunny and dry here and snowing just down the street. Only the targeted on-site sensor technology can correctly water these diverse micro climates.
So when it comes to leading the pack, JVWCD talks the talk and walks the walk.
Before and After - July 2002 and July 2003 (less water)
Moisture Graph - July 2003
The moisture graph below is from this site and shows the level of water moisture in the grass for the east lawn. The lower threshold was raised during the month. Note the differing watering times to fill the soil reservoir back to a full state.
