Backup_FINAL Appendix G - Water Management Strategy Equity Evaluation — original pdf

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APPENDIX G: WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGY EQUITY EVALUATION Each strategy considered as part of Water Forward 2024 was evaluated and scored in accordance with the Equity and Affordability Roadmap, as discussed in Appendix B. The strategies were evaluated based on the following themes. The results of this analysis are provided on the following pages. Themes: • Water Supply Reliability o Access to water o Infrastructure resiliency • Public Health o Regulatory requirements o Water quality o Environment • Accountability o Transparancy o Accessibility o Community outreach and education • Affordability and Economic Impacts o Rate impacts o Growth and development o Workforce development Score Summary – Potential Impacts/Benefits • Green highlight: net benefit, 5 points • Yellow highlight: net neutral, 3 points • Red highlight: net burden, 1 point FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 1Utility Water Loss Control Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Benefits: Improved water use efficiency, leaky pipes may be concentrated in areas with older infrastructure, which could include areas in marginalized communities. Replacing leaky pipes and reducing water loss should improve service and reliability. Potential impacts of increased construction to implement replacements and repairs may impact surrounding communities. Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Reducing water loss should result in improved water use efficiency and should improve infrastructure resilience in areas where water loss reduction projects, such as leaky replacement projects, are implemented. N/A Page 1/3 Score Potential Mitigation Strategies Plan to address construction impacts as part of project implementation Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Public Health 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? No. Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? No long-term impacts May have short-term impacts during construction that would require short-term maintenance (e.g., water shut-offs, flushing, etc.), depending on location of construction projects associated with this strategy N/A Reducing real water loss could result in less energy being used to pump water. N/A Yes, could look for opportunities to prioritize water loss reduction-driven improvements in marginalized community areas. N/A Strategy aimed at reducing utility-side water loss should reduce water loss and include system infrastructure improvements which should benefit system health. N/A N/A Strategy aimed at reducing utility-side water loss should reduce water loss and include system infrastructure improvements which should benefit system health. N/A Could develop process to track water loss activities spatially and analyze water loss activities against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data N/A Public Health No, since the strategy does not rely on individual customers to implement. N/A 3 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 5 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 2Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Utility Water Loss Control Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 2/3 Score Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? N/A Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? Accountability 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Could develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about system projects aimed at reducing utility water loss. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A N/A Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Continue to provide. Could present lessons learned from strategy implementation to other utilities to improve overall body of information for water loss reduction N/A 3 3 3 3 1 Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Strategy would be funded through rates, so rate increases may result in impacts on marginalized communities. Water main replacement implementation projects have multiple benefits including water loss reduction as well as system resilience benefits. FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 3Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Utility Water Loss Control Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? While there could be impacts on rates due to need for funding, strategy provides economical benefits by improving water use efficiency Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Continue to require new developments to construct needed system improvements in accordance with utility design standards and criteria. Implementation could include program for water workforce development. N/A N/A Average Score: 3.6 Potential Mitigation Strategies Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Page 3/3 Score 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 4Themes Questions Potential Strategy Impacts/Benefits Centralized Reclaimed Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 1/3 Score Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Water Supply Reliability 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? Water Supply Reliability 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? Potential for improved resiliency in emergencies by providing access to non-potable water from a second system source. Potential to increase access to water during drought situations if reclaimed water can be used for onsite purposes and to maintain outdoor irrigation to support community spaces. Outdoor irrigation from reclaimed in drought may provide benefit from mitigation of heat island effects. N/A Investing in centralized reclaimed system projects would expand AW's system and provide additional resilience to reclaimed water customers. N/A Possibly-- dual-plumbing for water distribution in residential buildings could result in increased maintenance requirements for owners due to additional pipe, some of which may be located in marginalized communities. However, development projects with a qualified affordable housing component are excluded from the reclaimed connection requirements. Programs to provide maintenance support, training for building management, etc. for dual plumbed systems. No significant energy resilience components. Implementation of this strategy could include a focus on bringing additional benefit to marginalized communities by providing an additional source of water (non-potable) during drought. The GoPurple program provides incentives to help projects offset costs to connect to the centralized reclaimed system, as well as expedited permit review and assistance with the PACE program for qualified projects. Reclaimed water use during drought could help protect ecosystem by supporting critical outdoor irrigation needs such as tree canopy. Strategy may benefit community value by supporting irrigation of outdoor spaces. N/A N/A N/A Buildings/projects incorporating reclaimed water use may have additional permitting steps depending on use and location of reclaimed water. Programs to provide education and assistance to marginalized communities seeking to navigate the permitting process. 5 5 3 3 5 5 1 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 5Themes Questions Potential Strategy Impacts/Benefits Centralized Reclaimed Page 2/3 Score Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? Limits on outdoor reclaimed water use over Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone (EARZ) may restrict use of centralized reclaimed in this area. In the EARZ there are other reuse options to meet outdoor demands such as onsite reuse from rainwater, stormwater, or air conditioning condensate. The extent of the current reclaimed infrastructure (primarily located near major wastewater infrastructure in the lower-elevation areas of AW's service area in the central and east parts of the City) may result in centralized reclaimed water primarily being implemented only in certain areas of the City. In areas where centralized reclaimed is not available, other reuse options like onsite reuse, sewer mining or decentralized reuse may be used. Reclaimed ordinances currently apply to multi-family residences, which often serve marginalized communities. To help address costs and other potential burdens, Austin Water's GoPurple program provides incentives to help projects offset costs to connect to the centralized reclaimed system, as well as expedited permit review and assistance with the PACE program for qualified projects. In addition multifamily development projects with a qualified affordable housing component are excluded from the reclaimed connection requirements. Potential Mitigation Strategies Continue to work with the Watershed Protection Department to evaluate approaches to make use of centralized reclaimed water possible for outdoor irrigation in sensitive areas. Continue to identify other reuse strategies like onsite reuse, decentralized reclaimed, or sewer mining to make reuse water available in areas of the City where centralized reclaimed is not available. Continue to explore potential methods to mitigate potential water quality impacts from reclaimed irrigation. Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Areas irrigated with reclaimed water may have higher levels of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus that may run off into stormwater flowing into streams. This may have potential to impact receiving stream water quality. Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? AW will track developments connecting to the centralized reclaimed water system spatially and analyze locations of connections against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data N/A Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about the centralized reclaimed system. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Engage the community when planning future ordinances and ordinance changes. N/A Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Where feasible and through GoPurple program implementation, explore extension of reclaimed water lines to marginalized communities who would benefit. N/A 1 1 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 6Themes Questions Potential Strategy Impacts/Benefits Centralized Reclaimed Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? Accountability Affordability and Economic Impacts 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Requires changes to implement and maintain dual plumbing in buildings and potentially how outdoor spaces are irrigated. Marginalized communities may be impacted by increased costs/additional maintenance. Tailored implementation programs could support this goal. Implementation program to work with community organizations and advocates to share knowledge of opportunities for reclaimed water and how it benefits Austin as a whole. N/A Use of reclaimed water can help to decrease a development's potable water bill, thus potentially decreasing costs passed on to renters. N/A Continued implementation of GoPurple program will help to mitigate economic impacts for marginalized communities. N/A Can look for opportunities for new developments to include centralized reclaimed or fund centralized reclaimed projects. N/A Implementation could include programs for dual-plumbing/reclaimed water workforce development. N/A Page 3/3 Score Potential Mitigation Strategies Continued implementation of GoPurple program. Programs to provide maintenance support, training for building management, etc. for dual plumbed systems. 1 5 5 3 5 5 Average Score: 3.4 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 7Customer Water Use Management Page 1/2 Potential Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Generally positive benefits to water supply in drought but potentially minimal during emergencies N/A Reducing demand may result in less peaking, allowing for stretching of infrastructure utilization. N/A Possibly; since strategy is customer-side measures, may require individuals to monitor and implement programs that could add additional maintenance. Reducing demand could result in less energy being used to pump water. N/A Possibly, with targeted implementation programs. Implementation programs could potentially be developed to help bring services to marginalized communities to support demand reduction strategies (e.g., training, incentives, etc.) N/A Reducing demand could result in ecosystem health and system health benefits. N/A Depending on the strategy, seek to implement support education and training programs to help minimize impacts Themes Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Questions 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Public Health Public Health Public Health Not anticipated. New requirements or regulations to implement this strategy could have the risk of imposing inequitable burdens on marginalized communities if not addressed in program design. Tailor implementation plan such that it avoids imposing inequitable burdens. Significant impact on water quality not anticipated Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? AW will continue to track adoption and utilization of conservation programs and rebates. Explore development of enhanced equity and affordability tracking components. Promote customer-side strategies through AW website and social media N/A N/A N/A 3 5 1 5 5 5 3 1 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 8Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Customer Water Use Management Page 2/2 Could develop strategies to collect public input and answer questions. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Implement community engagement for future ordinances/ordinance changes. N/A N/A Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Provide training on water conservation strategies, provide programs and implementation support, etc. Yes. Strategy requires customer-side participation, which may impose an additional burden especially to marginalized communities that may have increased limitations on time and funding. Provide training on water conservation strategies, provide grants for programs, etc. Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Accountability Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Programs to promote customer water use management can also provide broader educational benefits about other aspects of the City's water supply and resources. N/A There are potential financial benefits of this strategy by reducing customer-side water use with potential for implementation program support and cost mitigation through incentives and rebates. N/A There are potential financial benefits of this strategy by reducing customer-side water use with potential for implementation program support and cost mitigation through incentives and rebates. N/A Explore including additional requirements for new developments to promote water use management. N/A Promote workforce development opportunities related to the suite of customer water use management strategies N/A 3 3 1 5 3 3 3 3 Average Score: 3.2 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 9Decentralized Reclaimed Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 1/3 Score Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Potential for improved resiliency in emergencies by providing access to non-potable water from a second system source. Potential to increase access to water during drought situations if reclaimed water can be used for onsite purposes and to maintain outdoor irrigation to support community spaces. Outdoor irrigation from reclaimed in drought may provide benefit from mitigation of heat island effects. N/A Investing in decentralized reclaimed systems would expand AW's system and provide additional resilience to reclaimed water customers. N/A 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? Possibly-- dual-plumbing for water distribution in residential buildings could result in increased maintenance requirements for owners due to additional pipe, some of which may be located in marginalized communities. However, development projects with a qualified affordable housing component are excluded from the reclaimed connection requirements. Programs to provide maintenance support, training for building management, etc. for dual plumbed systems. Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Public Health Public Health 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? No significant energy resilience components. Could potentially result in reduced energy demands for pumping with demands being located closer to source. Implementation of this strategy could include a focus on bringing additional benefit to marginalized communities by providing an additional source of water (non-potable) during drought. Reclaimed water use during drought could help protect ecosystem by supporting critical outdoor irrigation needs such as tree canopy. Strategy may benefit community value by supporting irrigation of outdoor spaces. N/A N/A N/A Buildings/projects incorporating reclaimed water use may have additional permitting steps depending on use and location of reclaimed water. Programs to provide education and assistance to marginalized communities seeking to navigate the permitting process. 5 5 3 3 5 5 1 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 10Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Decentralized Reclaimed Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? Limits on outdoor reclaimed water use over Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone (EARZ) may restrict use of centralized reclaimed in this area. In the EARZ there are other reuse options to meet outdoor demands such as onsite reuse from rainwater, stormwater, or air conditioning condensate. The development-driven nature of decentralized reclaimed infrastructure may result in decentralized reclaimed water primarily being implemented only in certain areas of the City. In areas where decentralized reclaimed is not available, other reuse options like onsite reuse, sewer mining or centralized reuse may be used. Reclaimed ordinances currently apply to multi-family residences, which often serve marginalized communities. To help address costs and other potential burdens, Austin Water's GoPurple program provides incentives to help projects offset costs to connect to reclaimed systems, as well as expedited permit review and assistance with the PACE program for qualified projects. In addition multifamily development projects with a qualified affordable housing component are excluded from the reclaimed connection requirements. Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Areas irrigated with reclaimed water may have higher levels of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus that may run off into stormwater flowing into streams. This may have potential to impact receiving stream water quality. Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data N/A Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about decentralized reclaimed systems. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Implement community engagement for future ordinances/ordinance changes. N/A Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Where feasible and through GoPurple program implementation, explore extension of reclaimed water lines to marginalized communities who would benefit. Continue to develop plan concepts for future decentralized wastewater plants, where appropriate, and optimize for decentralized systems where possible. N/A Page 2/3 Score Potential Mitigation Strategies Continue to work with the Watershed Protection Department to evaluate approaches to make use of decentralized reclaimed water possible for outdoor irrigation in sensitive areas. Continue to identify other reuse strategies like onsite reuse, centralized reclaimed, or sewer mining to make reuse water available in areas of the City where decentralized reclaimed is not available. Continue to explore potential methods to mitigate potential water quality impacts from reclaimed irrigation. 1 1 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 11Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Decentralized Reclaimed Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? Requires changes to implement and maintain dual plumbing in buildings and potentially how outdoor spaces are irrigated. Marginalized communities may be impacted by increased costs/additional maintenance. Accountability 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Accountability Accountability Accountability Accountability 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Tailored implementation programs could support this goal. Implementation program to work with community organizations and advocates to share knowledge of opportunities for reclaimed water and how it benefits Austin as a whole. N/A Continue implementation of GoPurple program help provide affordability support to reclaimed water program implementation. Continue implementation of GoPurple program help provide affordability support to reclaimed water program implementation. Can look for opportunities for new developments to include reclaimed or fund reclaimed projects. Implementation could include programs for dual-plumbing/reclaimed water workforce development. N/A N/A N/A N/A Page 3/3 Score Potential Mitigation Strategies Continued implementation of GoPurple program. Programs to provide maintenance support, training for building management, etc. for dual plumbed systems. 1 5 3 3 5 5 Average Score: 3.3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 12Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Onsite Reuse Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 1/3 Score Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? Potential for improved resiliency in emergencies by providing access to non-potable water from a second system source. Potential to increase access to water during drought situations if reclaimed water can be used for onsite purposes. Outdoor irrigation from onsite reuse in drought may provide benefit from mitigation of heat island effects. Reducing demand for potable water being used for non-potable purposes may result in less peaking, allowing for stretching of infrastructure utilization. N/A Possibly-- dual-plumbing for water distribution in residential buildings could result in increased maintenance requirements for owners due to additional pipe, some of which may be located in marginalized communities. However, development projects with a qualified affordable housing component are excluded from the reclaimed connection requirements. Programs to provide maintenance support, training for building management, etc. for dual plumbed systems. Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? No significant energy resilience components. Could potentially result in reduced energy demands for pumping with demands being located closer to source. Implementation of this strategy could include a focus on bringing additional benefit to marginalized communities by providing an additional source of water (non-potable) during drought. Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? Capture and reuse of rainwater & stormwater could potentially provide beneficial impacts to stormwater quality. For blackwater systems, management of treatment systems with potential risks to public health would require careful management, reporting, and monitoring. For non-potable systems, adequate protection required to maintain separation between potable and non-potable systems onsite (backflow prevention, etc.) N/A Public Health 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? Buildings/projects incorporating onsite water use may have additional permitting steps depending on method/application. To help address costs and other potential barriers, Austin Water's GoPurple program includes cost mitigation components and affordable housing project variances. To help address costs and other potential barriers, Austin Water's GoPurple program includes cost mitigation components for qualified projects and affordable housing project variances. N/A N/A N/A 5 5 3 3 5 3 1 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 13Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Onsite Reuse Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Public Health Accountability Accountability Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? Limits on outdoor reclaimed water use over Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone, could limit use of non-potable onsite reuse, depending on water source. Onsite reuse ordinances currently apply to multi-family residences, which often serve marginalized communities. To help address costs and other potential burdens, Austin Water's GoPurple program provides incentives to help projects offset costs, as well as expedited permit review and assistance with the PACE program for qualified projects. In addition multifamily development projects with a qualified affordable housing component are excluded from onsite reuse requirements. Capture and reuse of rainwater & stormwater could potentially provide beneficial impacts to stormwater quality. Strategy may negatively impact water quality due to runoff over areas irrigated with reclaimed water. Onsite systems will not be operated by AW, with reporting and tracking by operators/owners. AW to track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data N/A N/A Onsite systems will not be operated by AW, so feedback on operational impacts would need to be provided by owners/operators. Permitted systems will need to comply with reporting requirements. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Implement community engagement for future ordinances/ordinance changes. N/A Where feasible and through GoPurple program implementation, explore onsite reuse opportunities in marginalized communities who would benefit. N/A Requires changes to implement and maintain dual plumbing in buildings and potentially how outdoor spaces are irrigated. Marginalized communities may be impacted by increased costs/additional maintenance. Page 2/3 Score Potential Mitigation Strategies To help address costs and other potential burdens, Austin Water's GoPurple program includes cost mitigation components for qualified projects and affordable housing project variances. 1 3 3 3 3 1 Continued implementation of GoPurple program. Programs to provide maintenance support, training for building management, etc. for onsite and dual plumbed systems. FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 14Themes Questions Potential Impacts/Benefits Onsite Reuse Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 3/3 Score 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Accountability Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Tailored implementation programs could support this goal. Implementation program to work with community organizations and advocates to share knowledge of opportunities for onsite reuse and how it benefits Austin as a whole. N/A Continued implementation of GoPurple program could help provide affordability support for onsite reuse program implementation. N/A Could have higher costs associated with construction and maintenance of onsite reuse systems. Anticipate having cost savings from reduced demand for potable water. Continued implementation of GoPurple program could help provide affordability support for onsite reuse program implementation. N/A Onsite systems could be paid for by developers. Potential benefits to having access to onsite reuse water for non-potable during an emergency or drought. N/A These strategies could generate demand for workforce including engineers, technicians, operators, and others with expertise in onsite reuse system installation, maintenance, and operations N/A 5 3 3 5 5 Average Score: 3.3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 15Water Efficient and Native Landscapes Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 1/2 Score Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Generally positive benefits to water supply in drought but potentially minimal during emergencies N/A Reducing demand may result in less peaking, allowing for stretching of infrastructure utilization. N/A Water Supply Reliability 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? Possibly; since strategy focuses on customer-side measures, which may require individuals to monitor and implement programs that could add additional maintenance. Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? Water Supply Reliability 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? Reducing demand could result in less energy being used to pump water. N/A Possibly, with targeted implementation programs. Implementation programs could potentially be developed to help bring services to marginalized communities to support water efficiency and native landscapes strategies (e.g., training, incentives, etc.) Reducing demand could result in ecosystem health and system health benefits. Potential changes to City landscaping requirements may not be in sync with existing homeowner association (HOA) rules N/A Depending on the strategy, may be able to be implement support education and training programs to help minimize impacts Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? New requirements or regulations to implement this strategy could have the risk of imposing inequitable burdens on marginalized communities if not addressed in program design. Tailor implementation plan such that it avoids imposing inequitable burdens. Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Potential benefits from increased native landscapes include potential for reduced fertilizer use and mowing/lawn care-related emissions. AW will continue to track adoption and utilization of conservation programs and rebates. Explore development of enhanced equity and affordability tracking components. Promote customer-side water efficiency and native landscapes strategies through AW website and social media Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Could develop strategies to collect public input and answer questions. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Implement community engagement for future ordinances/ordinance changes. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 3 5 1 5 5 5 3 1 5 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 16Water Efficient and Native Landscapes Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Provide training on outdoor water conservation strategies, provide programs and implementation support, etc. N/A Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? Yes. Strategy requires customer-side participation, which may impose an additional burden especially to marginalized communities that may have increased limitations on time and funding. Potential Mitigation Strategies Provide training on water conservation strategies, provide grants for programs, etc. Accountability 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Programs to promote customer use of increased native landscapes and outdoor water use efficiency may increase understanding of regional ecology and create educational opportunities. There are potential financial benefits of this strategy by reducing customer- side water use and potential for implementation program support and cost mitigation through incentives and rebates. There are potential financial benefits of this strategy by reducing customer- side water use with potential for implementation program support and cost mitigation through incentives and rebates. Explore including additional requirements for new developments to promote water use management. Promote workforce development opportunities related to landscaping with native and water-efficient landscapes. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Page 2/2 Score 3 1 5 3 3 3 5 Average: 3.4 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 17Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Aquifer Storage and Recovery Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 1/3 Score Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? No energy resilience components are planned at this time. There is a possible opportunity to co-locate ASR wellfield and green energy infrastructure. N/A Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Public Health Public Health Public Health Public Health Accountability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? ASR would likely benefit marginalized communities in Austin by providing supply during emergencies and drought; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. ASR has potential to impact areas, which could include marginalized communities, near the ASR wellfield due to local drawdown effects when ASR water is being recovered. AW is planning to perform local well mitigation so that potentially impacted communities can still access water when ASR is in water recovery mode. Benefits Austin's water system by providing supply during emergencies and drought; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system. None expected. The ASR integration point into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system including the east and south portions of AW's service area, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. ASR wellfield restrictions on use should help protect ecosystem health. Benefits Austin's water system by providing supply during emergencies and drought; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system. None expected in Austin service area. None anticipated Protections of ASR wellfield land may benefit water supplies by limiting certain types of development. Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 3 5 3 3 5 5 3 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 18Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Aquifer Storage and Recovery Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 2/3 Score Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about ASR. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Accountability Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? ASR integrates into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. Since ASR infrastructure is anticipated to be located outside of Austin's service area, for areas near the wellfield, could consider emergency interconnects. Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for educational facility located at the ASR wellfield site to provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation of ASR would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, ASR wellfield could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Depending on location, project could displace members of marginalized communities. 3 3 3 5 1 Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to neighboring communities. FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 19Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Aquifer Storage and Recovery Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation of ASR would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, ASR wellfield could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Depending on location, could potentially impact marginalized community members during construction or through easement requirements. Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Explore opportunities to leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency benefits from ASR Potentially develop workforce development plan for ASR maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A N/A Potential Mitigation Strategies Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to Austin and neighboring communities. Page 3/3 Score 1 3 3 Average Score: 3.2 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 20Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Brackish Groundwater Desalination Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 1/3 Score Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? Public Health Public Health 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Brackish groundwater desalination would likely benefit marginalized communities in Austin by providing a additional supply during emergencies; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. Brackish groundwater desalination may impact marginalized communities near the wellfield, which could be located outside of the city, due to construction impacts. Could develop implementation plan that considers and minimizes construction impacts. Should benefit Austin's water system by providing supply during emergencies; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. N/A No impacts expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. There is a possible opportunity to co-locate wellfield and green energy infrastructure. Depending on the location of wellfield, the strategy could improve service resiliency to AW's service area, including improving service to marginalized communities. Strategy may negatively impact ecosystem health due to handling (processing and disposal) of brine. No. If located outside of Austin, communities near infrastructure may not receive direct benefits of project. Look at potential mitigation strategies to provide community benefit, as appropriate None anticipated Strategy may negatively impact environment due to disposal of brine. Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data Develop effective brine handling (processing and disposal) method that considers potential environmental impacts. Develop effective brine disposal method that considers potential environmental impacts. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 3 5 3 3 5 1 3 3 1 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 21Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Brackish Groundwater Desalination Potential Mitigation Strategies Page 2/3 Score 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Accountability Accountability Accountability Accountability Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about brackish groundwater desalination. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Should be accessible since supply would be anticipated to be integrated into Austin's water system. Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for educational facility located at the wellfield site to provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation of brackish groundwater desalination would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, wellfield could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. 3 3 3 5 1 Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to neighboring communities. FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 22Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Brackish Groundwater Desalination Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation of brackish groundwater desalination would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, wellfield could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Depending on location, could potentially impact marginalized community members during construction or through easement requirements. Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Explore opportunities to leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency benefits from strategy N/A Potentially develop workforce development plan for brackish groundwater desalination wellfield and facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Potential Mitigation Strategies Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to Austin and neighboring communities. Page 3/3 Score 1 3 3 Average Score: 2.9 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 23Additional Lower Colorado River Authority Supply Page 1/2 Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Strategy to increase water supply including in drought, however would not increase supply diversification. N/A Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? AW infrastructure resilience benefits from system improvements to access increased Colorado River water supply 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? No impacts expected. 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? No energy resilience components are planned at this time. Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Public Health Public Health Public Health Public Health 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? No impacts expected. No impacts expected. No impacts expected. Water from the strategy would be distributed into the AW distribution system as a whole including serving marginalized communities. Water from the strategy would be distributed into the AW distribution system as a whole including serving marginalized communities. 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? N/A Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Accountability Accountability Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? N/A N/A N/A N/A FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 24Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Additional Lower Colorado River Authority Supply Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation would require funding through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation would require funding through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? N/A Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A Page 2/2 Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. 1 1 3 Average Score: 2.7 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 25Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score New Off-Channel Reservoir Page 1/3 An off-channel reservoir would likely benefit marginalized communities in Austin by providing supply during emergencies and drought; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. N/A Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can manage and potentially access during drought and emergencies. N/A None expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. The strategy integration into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. Public health impacts not anticipated. Potential for ecosystem health impacts would need to be identified and addressed as part of reservoir development project. Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Public Health Public Health Public Health Public Health Accountability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? None anticipated None anticipated No impacts anticipated Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 5 5 3 3 5 3 3 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 26Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score New Off-Channel Reservoir Page 2/3 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Accountability Accountability Accountability Accountability Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about off- channel reservoir. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Water from strategy integrates into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for educational facility located at the off-channel reservoir site to provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, project could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. 3 3 3 5 1 Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Explore options to minimize potential impacts to neighboring communities. FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 27Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score New Off-Channel Reservoir Page 3/3 Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, project could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Depending on location and implementation challenges, project may cause risk of displacement for some members of marginalized communities. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to Austin and neighboring communities. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, impacted access to public transit, etc.). Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A 1 3 3 Average Score: 3.2 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 28Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score New Off Channel Reservoir with Reclaimed Water Page 1/2 Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? Public health impacts not anticipated. Potential for ecosystem health impacts would need to be identified and addressed as part of reservoir development project and with additional monitoring of water quality. Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? Water Supply Reliability 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health Public Health Public Health Accountability Accountability 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? An off-channel reservoir (OCR) would likely benefit marginalized communities in Austin by providing supply during emergencies and drought; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. In drought an OCR with reclaimed water supply may have increased resilience compared to one without reclaimed water supply. Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can manage and potentially access during drought and emergencies. None expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. The strategy integration into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. None anticipated No impacts anticipated. Potential for water quality impacts would need to be identified and addressed as part of reservoir development project and with additional monitoring of water quality. Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about off-channel reservoir with reclaimed. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 5 5 3 3 5 3 3 3 1 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 29New Off Channel Reservoir with Reclaimed Water Potential Mitigation Strategies N/A Page 2/2 Score Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Accountability Accountability Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Water from strategy integrates into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). N/A N/A Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for educational facility located at the off-channel reservoir site to provide resources and education about water. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, project could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Depending on location, project could impact development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Depending on location and implementation challenges, project may cause risk of displacement for some members of marginalized communities. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Explore options to minimize potential impacts to neighboring communities. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, impacted access to public transit, etc.). Explore options to minimize potential impacts to Austin and neighboring communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Average Score: 3.1 3 3 5 1 1 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 30Interbasin Transfer Page 1/2 Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Themes Water Supply Reliability Questions 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Public Health Public Health Public Health 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Accountability Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Increased water supply would benefit the city overall, including marginalized communities by increasing water supply resilience during emergency situations and drought. Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can potentially access including during drought and emergencies. None expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. N/A The strategy integration into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. Impact to public or ecosystem health not likely. Depending on interbasin transfer source, there may be ecosystem impacts in source basin. None anticipated. Depending on interbasin transfer source, there may be impacts in source basin. N/A No impacts anticipated. Depending on interbasin transfer source, there may be impacts in source basin. N/A Water from other basins may be of a different water quality. More/less/different treatment potentially required. Depending on the interbasin transfer source, there may be source water impacts in source basin. Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. N/A Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about strategy. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Explore mitigation strategies as part of project including evaluating treatment options. 5 5 3 3 5 3 3 3 1 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 31Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Interbasin Transfer Page 2/2 Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Water from strategy would need to integrate into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. N/A Accountability Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for an educational facility to provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Average Score: 3.0 3 3 3 1 1 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 32Conventional Ground Water Page 1/3 Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Additional water supply would benefit AW by being a source of water during emergencies. Groundwater supplies are also typically more resilient to drought than surface water supplies. Overall resilience is improved by diversifying supplies. Groundwater may impact marginalized communities near the wellfield due to local drawdown effects. Benefits Austin's water system by providing a second source of supply during emergencies; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. AW could consider local well mitigation so that impacted communities can still access water during times of need. Water Supply Reliability 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? No impacts expected. Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? No energy resilience components are planned at this time. Possible opportunity to co-locate wellfield and green energy infrastructure. Water Supply Reliability 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? The strategy could improve service resiliency of AW's service area, including improving service to marginalized communities. Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? Construction could potentially have ecosystem impacts. Groundwater will require additional treatment for compatibility with other AW supplies, which may increase risk to public health. Public Health 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? None anticipated in AW service area. Communities located near groundwater infrastructure but outside AW service area may not receive direct benefits of project. Public Health Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? None anticipated N/A Groundwater pumping may cause drawdown of aquifers that others use as a source of water supply. Long-term pumping of the aquifer may impact our ability to access groundwater in the future. Would need to study and evaluate potential mitigation strategies. N/A N/A N/A N/A For ecosystem health, could consider preserving land within the groundwater wellfield. Treatment requirements would need to be determined as part of project planning and implementation Project could explore implementation actions including providing emergency interconnect with local water providers to provide community benefit. 3 5 3 3 5 1 3 3 1 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 33Conventional Ground Water Page 2/3 Themes Questions Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Service Area Impacts/Benefits Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers including pumping and aquifer level information. N/A Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Accountability Accountability Accountability Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about groundwater. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Integrates to main distribution system, so additional support for access is not anticipated. Could consider emergency interconnects. Depending on location, construction and maintenance may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Plan for educational facility located at the groundwater wellfield site to provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A N/A N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation GW would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, groundwater wellfield could limit development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. 3 3 3 3 3 1 Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to neighboring communities. FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 34Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Conventional Ground Water Page 3/3 Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation GW would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Depending on location, groundwater wellfield could limit development opportunities and tax income for nearby communities. Depending on location, could potentially impact marginalized community members during construction or through easement requirements. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Explore options to minimize potential impacts to Austin and neighboring communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Explore opportunities to leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency benefits from strategy N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Potentially develop workforce development plan for brackish groundwater desalination wellfield and facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Average Score: 2.8 1 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 35Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Direct Potable Reuse - Wastewater Treatment Plant Page 1/3 Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Direct potable reuse (DPR) would provide increased water supply, which should benefit the city overall, including marginalized communities by increasing water supply resilience including during emergency situations and drought. N/A Water Supply Reliability 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can manage and potentially access during drought and emergencies. N/A No impacts expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. The strategy integration into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. Strategy could introduce risk to public health since potable water source would be treated wastewater treated to potable (and above) standards. It may be difficult for treatment to completely remove substances such as pharmaceutical residuals and emerging contaminants with current methods and technologies. Strategy does not directly improve ecosystem health. Direct potable reuse (DPR) treatment methods and technologies would need to continue to be evaluated and adapted as more information about treating for pharmaceutical residuals and emerging contaminants becomes available. Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? Public Health None anticipated in AW service area. Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? None anticipated N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Strategy could have water quality impacts with water source being treated wastewater treated to potable (and above) standards Direct potable reuse (DPR) treatment methods and technologies would need to continue to be evaluated and adapted as more information about treating for pharmaceutical residuals and emerging contaminants becomes available. 5 5 3 3 5 1 3 3 1 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 36Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Direct Potable Reuse - Wastewater Treatment Plant Page 2/3 Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. N/A Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Accountability Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about strategy. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Water from strategy integrates into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. N/A Implementation of direct potable reuse (DPR) as a strategy would require pubic understanding that DPR is safe to drink. Bottled water consumption may increase as a result. Could partner with community organizations to educate on direct potable reuse strategy and water quality. Plan for educational facility to provide resources and education about direct potable reuse and water. N/A Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). 3 3 3 1 3 1 1 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 37Direct Potable Reuse - Wastewater Treatment Plant Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Themes Affordability and Economic Impacts Affordability and Economic Impacts Questions 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Page 3/3 3 3 Average Score: 2.8 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 38Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Indirect Potable Reuse Page 1/3 Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Indirect potable reuse (IPR) would provide increased water supply, which should benefit the city overall, including marginalized communities by increasing water supply resilience including during emergency situations and drought. Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can manage and potentially access during extreme drought. No impacts expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. N/A The strategy integration into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. IPR potentially could also help advance development of the reclaimed system. Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? Strategy could introduce ecosystem and public health risk that would need to be well understood and mitigated for including developing strategies to meet treatment requirements. Treatment methods and technologies would need to be evaluated and used to provide appropriate treatment of the water going in to Lady Bird Lake. Public Health None anticipated in AW service area. 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? Public Health 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? None anticipated Public Health 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Strategy could have water quality impacts with water source being treated wastewater being discharged into Lady Bird Lake for subsequent withdrawal and treatment to potable standards at Ullrich Water Treatment Plant Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. Treatment methods and technologies would need to be evaluated and used to provide appropriate treatment of the water going in to Lady Bird Lake. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 5 5 3 3 5 1 3 3 1 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 39Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Indirect Potable Reuse Page 2/3 Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about strategy. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Water from strategy integrates into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. N/A Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Accountability Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Implementation of indirect potable reuse (IPR) as a strategy would require public understanding that IPR is safe to drink. Bottled water consumption during extreme drought may increase as a result. Could partner with community organizations to educate on indirect potable reuse strategy and water quality. Plan for educational facility to provide resources and education about indirect potable reuse and water. N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implementation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A 3 3 1 3 1 1 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 40Themes Affordability and Economic Impacts Questions 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Indirect Potable Reuse Page 3/3 Score 3 Average Score: 2.8 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 41Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Lake Walter E. Long (Decker) Off-Channel Reservoir Page 1/3 Score Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? Use of Lake Walter E. Long off-channel reservoir would likely benefit marginalized communites in Austin by providing supply during emergencies and drought; increasing the resilience of Austin's water system and ability to serve customers as a whole. There would be a resilience benefit from new water treatment plant at Decker. 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can manage and potentially access during drought and emergencies. There would be a resilience benefit from new water treatment plant at Walter E. Long. Water Supply Reliability None expected. 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? No energy resilience components are planned at this time. N/A Water Supply Reliability 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? The strategy integration into the AW distribution system should improve service resiliency to the Austin water system, including improving service resiliency to marginalized communities. Public Health Public health impacts not anticipated. Potenital for ecosystem health impacts would need to be identified and addressed as part of project development. 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? Public Health None anticipated Public Health None anticipated N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 5 5 3 3 5 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 42Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Lake Walter E. Long (Decker) Off-Channel Reservoir Page 2/3 Score Public Health No impacts anticipated 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? Accountability 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. Accountability Accountability Accountability Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about Walter E. Long off-channel reservoir. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. Provide information about anticpated lake level flucutations with strategy implementation. Water from strategy integrates into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. Depending on construction and maintenance activites may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Public outreach needed to provide information on lake levels which may have more frequent anticipated lake level fluctuations. Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for educational facilityto provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 3 3 3 3 3 5 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 43Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Lake Walter E. Long (Decker) Off-Channel Reservoir Affordability and Economic Impacts Implmentation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Affordability and Economic Impacts Possible economic benefits related to continued recreation use and protections related to Walter E. Long's use as a water supply. Affordability and Economic Impacts Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development Affordability and Economic Impacts Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A N/A N/A Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Page 3/3 Score 1 3 3 3 Average Score: 3.3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 44Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Seawater Desalination Page 1/3 Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability Water Supply Reliability 1.1 Given that marginalized communities can be the most impacted by emergency situations, how does the strategy impact/benefit Austin Water’s access to water supply, especially during drought or other emergency situations? 1.2 How does the strategy benefit Austin Water’s water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater infrastructure resilience? 1.3 Does this strategy create an inequitable maintenance burden for Austin Water customers who are a part of marginalized communities? Water Supply Reliability 1.4 Does this strategy include energy resilience components? Water Supply Reliability 1.5 Can this strategy be tailored to help improve water, reclaimed water, and/or wastewater service to marginalized communities? Public Health 2.1 How does the proposed strategy help equitably restore, protect, or impact public or ecosystem health (air, land, water, soil)? Public Health Public Health Public Health Accountability 2.2 Does the proposed strategy include policy and/or regulatory requirements that pose barriers to marginalized communities accessing the benefits of the strategy? 2.3 Does the strategy include regulatory requirements that place inequitable burdens on marginalized communities? 2.4 Does the strategy impact and/or benefit source water, receiving water, and/or drinking water quality? 3.1 How will AW track and publicly report strategy implementation outcomes related to equity and affordability? The strategy would be expected to benefit Austin Water's access to water supply because seawater would be a source that would be expected to not run out during times of drought. This strategy would be expected to increase Austin's water supply reliablity. N/A Strategy would be planned to increase AW's resilience overall by providing additional water that AW can potentially access including during drought and emergencies. None expected. No energy resilience components are planned at this time. This strategy is energy-intensive. Mitigation strategies for reducing energy use or generating/using renewable energy sources could be explored. Energy would likely be required to be sourced from energy providers outside of the Austin area. The strategy could improve service resiliency of AW's service area, including improving service to marginalized communities. N/A This strategy would rely on water from the gulf which is abundant and could help improve supply resiliency. The brine created from the desalination process would need to be handled in an environmentally responsible way. This strategy requires considerable infrastructure construction from the coast up to the Austin area and ongoing maintenance. None anticipated in AW service area. None anticipated Potential impacts would need to be evaluated. Track implementation spatially and analyze implementation against spatially disaggregated equity and affordability data. Use multiple forms of communication with customers. N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Develop effective brine handeling (processing and disposal) method that considers potential environmental impacts. 5 5 3 3 5 1 3 3 3 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 45Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Seawater Desalination Page 2/3 Accountability 3.2 How will AW create a system for the community to provide feedback during implementation if inequitable outcomes are identified? What processes could be created to potentially adapt water management strategies during implementation or develop new mitigation strategies to address these concerns? Develop strategies to collect comments and answer questions about strategy. With future WF Plan update, convene Community Advisory Group to provide input on implementation. Include proposed changes for consideration in future WF Plan updates. N/A Accountability 3.3 What approaches could AW use to make access to these strategies available? Water from strategy would need to integrate into the potable water distribution system that serves customers throughout the system. Accountability Accountability 3.4 Does the strategy require behavioral change from the public? Does this behavior change impact marginalized communities more than others? 3.5 How does this strategy increase equitable access to information and education opportunities to increase community knowledge about water? Depending on location, construction may have short-term behavioral impacts on the public (such as taking a different route to work if construction is in the way). Development of an education facility could support this goal. Potentially plan for an educational facility to provide resources and education about water. N/A N/A N/A Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.1 Are there rate/financial impacts and/or benefits of this strategy? What are the opportunities to mitigate the rate/financial impacts for marginalized communities? Implmentation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.2 How does this strategy economically impact or benefit vulnerable communities? Are there existing assistance programs that can be used to address the impacts? Implmentation would require funding of the project through rates, which may disproportionately affect marginalized communities. Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.3 How can this strategy best leverage growth and development to maximize the sustainability and resiliency of our water resources for all? Additional supply in the future is beneficial with population growth and development N/A Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). Potential for rate impacts to be minimized for Customer Assistance Program customers. Potential for low cost implementation project funding access through TWDB programs, as appropriate. Consider other burdens that could occur during construction (e.g., business closures, lack of access to public transit, etc.). 3 3 3 3 1 1 3 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 46Themes Questions Service Area Impacts/Benefits Potential Mitigation Strategies Score Affordability and Economic Impacts 4.4 How does the strategy enhance workforce development opportunities for vulnerable communities? Potentially develop workforce development plan for facilities maintenance and operations as part of implementation. N/A Seawater Desalination Page 3/3 3 Average Score: 3.0 FINAL - Water Forward 2024 Appendix GG - 47