Water Conservation

NMC Water Conservation Graphic

National Mayor's Challenge for Water Conservation

Water conservation is an essential part of preserving our natural resources and ensuring a sustainable future. As one of the driest states in the country, water is a precious resource that we must conserve and protest. Every drop of water saved can make a significant difference in reducing our impact on the environment, as well as our wallets. Mayor Bud Starker, the City of Wheat Ridge, and Sustainable Wheat Ridge are excited to participate in the Wyland's National Mayor's Challenge for Water Conservation for the first time ever this year!

Winning cities and residents are eligible to win hundreds of prizes, including up to $3,000.00 towards home utility payments, home improvement store gift cards, smart irrigation controllers, and many more!

To participate, visit mywaterpledge.com, search for Wheat Ridge, and take a quick pledge to start saving water! The challenge will remain open from April 1 - 30. 

Check out these tips for reducing indoor and outdoor water usage:
1. Fix leaks promptly - leaky toilets waste an average of 200 gallons of water per day
2. Install low-flow fixtures like showerheads, faucets, and toilets or consider installing faucet aerators
3. Take shorter showers and turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth - reducing your shower time by even 1 minute can save your household over 900 gallons of water per year
4. Use a rain barrel to collect water for your yard or other plans; in Colorado, you can have up to two rain barrels with a combined storage limit of 110 gallons
5. Install a smart irrigation system; these systems use weather data to adjust watering schedules and reduce water waste

If you still need extra motivation to conserve water, consider these facts:
1. Water covers 70.9% of the Earth's surface, but only 3% of Earth's water is freshwater. 97% of the water on Earth is salt water.
2. Approximately 400 billion gallons of water are used in the United States every day
3. In one year, the average US residence uses over 100,000 gallons of water indoors and outdoors
4. The average faucet flows at a rate of 2 gallons per minute
5. At 1 drip per second, a leaky faucet can leak 3,000 gallons per year