Item 05 - 2026 Q2 Report on Water Management Strategy Implementation — original pdf

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Water Management Strategy Implementation REPORT Second Quarter 2026, April - June August 12, 2026 Contents  Second Quarter Summary  Water Conservation Updates  Water Loss Reduction Updates  Reclaimed Water and Onsite Reuse Updates  Conservation Outreach Updates  Water Supply Project Updates  Water Use and GPCD  Notes Regarding Data 2 Second Quarter Introduction The Water Management Strategy Implementation Report is intended to provide transparency and accountability regarding the execution of strategies from the 2024 Water Conservation Plan and the 2024 Water Forward Plan. The plans include proactive and substantial demand management strategies and innovative local supply strategies, but the hard work necessary to complete the strategies and meet the goals are illustrated in the implementation reports.  Spring is a busy time for community engagement, particularly in-person events and media spots, as residents prepare landscapes for the summer.  51,000 feet of large-diameter leak detection  Three reclaimed water projects move into the construction phase  2026 Texas Water conference, Austin Water received awards for:  Publications, Austin Water’s Strategic Plan  Digital Content, Austin Water Social Media  Water Conservation, Landscape Transformation for New Single-Family Homes 3 Water Conservation Updates  Staff attended 17 community events across the city to promote water conservation rebates and activities in Q2  Landscape Transformation Strategy  Texas Water 2026 Water Conservation Award  New pressure-reducing irrigation components added to mandatory irrigation inspections  Enforcement of the 50% limitation of irrigation systems in new homes to be developed as a Rule (posting in October)  Rebate application and enforcement processes transferred to Austin Water’s customer management system for better integration and customer support 4 Water Conservation Metrics Residential Rebate Programs Approved Rebates 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Drought Survival Tools Irrigation Upgrades Rainwater Harvesting Rebates WaterWise Landscape WaterWise Rainscape Other Residential Programs Q2 2025-Q1 2026 Q2 2026 5 Water Conservation Metrics Commercial Rebate Programs 5 4 3 2 1 0 Approved Rebates 4 3 2 1 1 Bucks for Business Q2 2025-Q1 2026 Q2 2026 6 Water Conservation Metrics Compliance Assessments Number of Compliant Commercial Facilities Number of Compliant Commercial Facilities 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Landscape Irrigation Assessment Cooling Tower Assessment Vehicle Wash Assessment Q2 2025-Q1 2026 Q2 2026 Q2 2025-Q1 2026 Q2 2026 7 Water Conservation Strategy Milestones (Water Conservation Plan, p. 35-36, Water Forward Plan, p. 34, 36) 2026 Milestones Commercial Incentives Progress Identify opportunities for CII facility owners/managers to benefit from the My ATX Water alerts and information. Landscape transformation Coordinate with Austin Development Services to increase inspections of new- development soil inspections. Council adoption and implementation of local amendments to the 2024 Uniform Plumbing Code (pressure-reduction devices, irrigation area, laundry to landscape). Not Started Planning In Progress Completed 8 Water Loss Reduction Updates  AMI leak detection and pressure-reducing valve (PRV) metering for use in district metered area (DMA) trials continue  Evaluation and testing of treatment plant production meters by specialty contractor began  Centralized SCADA data dashboard operationalized for all meters at treatment plants to help identify flow anomalies  Third party validation of 2025 TWDB Water Loss Audit began 9 Water Loss Reduction Metrics Number of water main leaks detected and repaired 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 140 128 116 76 72 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Q1 2026 Q2 2026 10 Water Loss Reduction Metrics Linear feet of leak detection performed on large diameter transmission lines Linear feet of leak detection performed on small diameter transmission lines 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0 0 0 0 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Feet 51,000 17,000 2.0 1.8 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.0 Q1 2026 Q2 2026 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Million Feet Q1 2026 Q2 2026 Contracted Austin Water Staff 11 Water Loss Reduction Strategy Milestones (Water Conservation Plan, p. 33-34, Water Forward Plan, p. 33) 2026 Milestones Progress Develop an AW Leak Detection Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for leak detection practices, data management, and continuous training requirements. Develop an AW Production Meter SOP which includes production meter measurement improvement recommendations. Develop an AW Data Handling Errors Mitigation SOP. Create dashboards to integrate SCADA, AMI, pressure monitoring and leak detection data. Expand the use of District Management Areas across the city and consider partial conversion to Pressure Management Areas (PMAs). Not Started Planning In Progress Completed 12 Reclaimed Water & Onsite Water Reuse Updates  West Riverside Reclaimed Water Main, Krieg Fields Reclaimed Water Line Restoration, and Travis Heights Reclaimed Water Main projects began construction.  Held workforce development workshop for OWRS Operators in June to get feedback on development of a certificate training course 13 Reclaimed Water Metrics Total number of reclaimed water meters 225 226 226 228 229 250 200 150 100 50 0 Volume of centralized reclaimed water used 639 487 355 326 396 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Q1 2026 Q2 2026 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Million Gallons Q1 2026 Q2 2026 14 Current Reclaimed CIP Projects Projects Phase Oltorf Reclaimed Water Main Phase 2 (7,000 linear feet, Q4 2026) ABIA North Reclaimed Loop Main (4,100 linear feet, Q4 2026) Fallwell Lane Capital Renewal Project (6,400 linear feet, Q4 2027) Travis Heights Reclaimed Water Main (6,200 linear feet, Q4 2027) Krieg Fields Reclaimed Water Line Restoration (1,150 l.f., Q2 2027) West Riverside Reclaimed Water Main (2,900 linear feet, Q4 2027) South 1st Reclaimed Water Main (5,500 linear feet, Q3 2028) Toomey Road Reclaimed Water Main (3,300 linear feet, Q3 2028) Travis Co. Courts Reclaimed Water Main Ext. (3,600 l.f., Q3 2028) Montopolis Reclaimed Elevated Storage Tank (Q1 2030) Downtown Reclaimed Water Transmission Main (5,500 l.f., Q1 2033) Preliminary Design Advertisement Construction 15 Onsite Water Reuse and GoPurple Metrics GoPurple Program Activity in Previous Quarter  Onsite Water Reuse System Incentives  No activity this quarter  Reclaimed Main Extension Rebates  No activity this quarter  Expedited Building Plan Review Rebates  2 projects  Fee in Lieu of Onsite Water Reuse Systems  1 reclaimed-ready project(s) approved for fee in lieu 4 3 2 1 0 Onsite water reuse system construction permits approved 3 3 3 3 1 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Q1 2026 Q2 2026 16 Reclaimed and Onsite Water Reuse Milestones (Water Conservation Plan, p. 38-39, Water Forward Plan, p. 38-39) 2026 Milestones Centralized Reclaimed Progress Implement projects to Complete the Core. Complete Reclaimed Water Long Range Plan update. Decentralized Reclaimed Collaborate with new developments to identify opportunities for decentralized reclaimed. Develop infrastructure planning and design guidance. (2028) (2027) Not Started Planning In Progress Completed 17 Reclaimed and Onsite Water Reuse Milestones (Water Conservation Plan, p. 39, Water Forward Plan, p. 40) 2026 Milestones Onsite Water Reuse Progress Develop an operator training certificate program for onsite reuse systems. Update utility billing and permitting systems with new metering and billing methodologies for onsite water reuse systems. Program new software to track onsite reuse system permit compliance. Design and install an onsite water reuse system and dual plumbing for an AW building remodel. Not Started Planning In Progress Completed 18 Conservation Outreach Updates  Ad spots increase during the Spring and Summer to amplify conservation rebates, watering day schedules, and registering in the My ATX Water portal to monitor for leaks  AW PIO provides monthly tips and resources to support conservation on We Are Austin (CBS)  Home Water Reports were distributed each month to ~170,000 households with an open rate of >60% 19 Conservation Outreach Metrics Total audience reached with conservation messaging 18,715,327 Impressions Promos for WaterWise webinars had high engagement rates (based on reactions and shares) Dreams Do Come True (turn off irrigation after a rain) had high engagement rate 20 Conservation Outreach Metrics My ATX Water Portal Leak Alerts My ATX Water continuous use (leak) alerts sent to customers 25 28 28 29 23 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Thousand Alerts Q1 2026 Q2 2026 21 Conservation Outreach Milestones (Water Conservation Plan, p. 37, Water Forward Plan, p. 34, 36) 2026 Milestones My ATX Water Progress Expand My ATX Water reporting to better understand customer engagement through the portal. Investigate additional methods to encourage residential customers to use the My ATX Water portal and water-saving alerts. Conduct pilot outreach activities to learn the best ways to encourage customers to set and strive towards voluntary water budgets. Not Started Planning In Progress Completed 22 Water Supply Updates  In May, Council authorized funding for Phase 1B Aquifer Storage and Recovery and Brackish Groundwater Desalination Field Testing, to be conducted on City- owned land in Eastern Travis County 23 Progress Water Supply Strategies (Water Forward Plan, p. 43, 43, 45, 46) 2026 Milestones Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) Conduct Phase 1B field testing and make recommendations for ASR pilot project Lake Walter E. Long Water Supply Reservoir Complete feasibility report to evaluate off-channel reservoir configurations and recommend a preferred configuration Begin water quality sampling of Lake Walter E. Long Indirect Potable Reuse and Capture Local Inflows to Lady Bird Lake Develop IPR schematic design, design criteria, technical specifications, to include development of project configuration and sizing components Begin design-build procurement process and, pending Council approval, issue design-build contract The first Brackish Groundwater Desalination milestone is planned for 2028. Not Started Planning In Progress Completed 24 Water Use and Gallons Per Capita Daily (GPCD)  Q2 water use (118 GPCD) was less than previous years, particularly for single- family residential  For second quarter in a row, multi- family customers used slightly more than single-family customers  Commercial and industrial customers use was very similar to previous years. 25 Water Use and GPCD (Gallons Per Capita Daily) 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 ) D C P G ( y a D r e p a t i p a C r e p s n o l l a G CY 2018 121 GPCD CY 2019 128 GPCD CY 2020 131 GPCD CY 2021 125 GPCD CY 2022 133 GPCD CY 2023 130 GPCD CY 2024 130 GPCD CY 2025 128 GPCD CY 2026 115 GPCD GPCD by Calendar Year and Quarter 15 9 11 29 17 5 9 29 19 17 8 10 26 27 24 28 42 48 19 5 9 20 24 30 21 10 11 32 17 6 10 23 31 26 21 7 10 24 28 17 5 9 19 24 55 36 28 34 22 9 11 25 32 23 7 10 19 28 21 7 9 20 29 52 42 39 22 5 10 19 25 30 19 8 10 25 31 18 6 10 21 29 24 6 10 20 24 5 8 17 28 27 33 36 46 34 17 5 9 17 27 31 22 9 12 30 17 8 11 25 33 30 19 6 10 22 30 22 10 12 31 21 6 10 22 33 29 16 6 11 22 29 17 5 10 18 27 23 8 11 27 23 8 9 24 31 31 21 6 10 23 29 22 5 9 18 28 21 8 11 26 20 7 10 23 23 7 10 22 33 30 31 22 5 9 18 28 45 52 35 55 30 37 33 44 38 29 35 30 37 40 33 18 6 10 22 23 5 9 18 29 31 27 29 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 . 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Calendar Year (CY) & Quarter 2023 2024 2025 2026 Non-Revenue Water City of Austin Wholesale Industrial Commercial Multi-family Residential Single-family Residential CY GPCD 26 Residential water use peaked less than in previous years GPCD by Calendar Year and Quarter STAGE 1 STAGE 2 D C P G 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Q1 2019 Q2 2019 Q3 2019 Q4 2019 Q1 2020 Q2 2020 Q3 2020 Q4 2020 Q1 2021 Q2 2021 Q3 2021 Q4 2021 Q1 2022 Q2 2022 Q3 2022 Q4 2022 Q1 2023 Q2 2023 Q3 2023 Q4 2023 Q1 2024 Q2 2024 Q3 2024 Q4 2024 Q1 2025 Q2 2025 Q3 2025 Q4 2025 Q1 2026 Q2 2026 Total Commercial City of Austin Single-family Residential Multi-family Residential Industrial Wholesale Non-revenue Water GPCD STAGE 1 STAGE 2 27 Moving Forward The third quarter of the year (July, August , September) is the hottest and driest part of the year, resulting in the highest-water use quarter of they year.  Continue to encourage water conservation when the lakes are full.  Initiating implementation of all Black & Veatch recommendations to mitigate water loss by the end of the fiscal year. Currently, 24 are completed out of 32 recommendations. 28 Notes Regarding Data Quarterly reporting of strategy implementation is a groundbreaking effort undertaken by Austin Water. Readers should note several points of information regarding the metric data. Additional metrics may be available in future quarterly reports.  Quarterly Data – All quarterly data should be considered preliminary and draft, subject to adjustment and revision at the end of the year and included in the annual report.  Historical Data – Where possible in the metrics charts, the four previous quarterly metrics are included for reference. Not all metrics may historical data. 29 Austin Water