Although there has been a recent uptick of use as people are washing their hands more frequently, customers of the Apache Junction Water District last year were using less water each day than 10 …
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Although there has been a recent uptick of use as people are washing their hands more frequently, customers of the Apache Junction Water District last year were using less water each day than 10 years prior.
“Back in 1999, a few years after the city took over the water district, we were at about 145 gallons per day per person and recently in 2019, we are down to 95 gallons per day per person,” Mike Loggins, director of the Apache Junction Water Utilities Community Facilities District, said.
“So even though we gained customers, they’re using less water so we’re using about the same amount of water as we were five or six years ago,” he said at a May 5 special meeting of the water district board.
Tucson is one of the best cities for water conservation, with just below 90 gallons per day per person, Mr. Loggins said.
“The (Arizona) Department of Water Resources requires us to be below 120, so we’re well below that,” he said.
Recent Apache Junction Water District data shows more water usage, which may be due to increased temperatures and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I know it’s been over 100 degrees the last week here. We have seen our production go up, so people are using water quite a bit these days, washing their hands and taking care of stuff,” Mr. Loggins said.
Apache Junction City Council members serve as the water utilities community facilities district board. In attendance were Chair Jeff Serdy and member Gail Evans. Attending by phone were Vice Chair Chip Wilson and members Robin Barker, Christa Rizzi, Robert Schroeder and Jeff Struble.
The district serves approximately eight square miles and a population of 14,348, which accounts for more than one-third of the City of Apache Junction. In 2016 the district served about 14,000 customers, according to ajwaterdistrict.org.
The amount of potable water used in the district over the last three years, according to Mr. Loggins, is:
2017: 1,706 acre-feet.
2018: 1,675 acre-feet.
2019: 1,625 acre-feet.
“So if you looked at our whole water portfolio, which is around 7,000 acre-feet, we’re only using 1,625 currently for potable use,” Mr. Loggins said to the water district board.
One acre-foot is the amount of water required to fill an acre of land to a depth of 1 foot and equals 325,851 gallons, according to the Water Resources Research Center in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona.
Water festival canceled
The Apache Junction Water Festival, planned for April 23 at Prospector Park, was canceled, Mr. Loggins said.
“Unfortunately our 2020 water festival last month was canceled due to the COVID-19. None of the schools are in service, we can’t have that many people around, so it was canceled. We plan on doing it again next year. But at this point in time, we do not have one this year,” he said at the district board meeting.
“Yeah, it’s a shame about the water festival. It’s always a highlight of the school year,” Chair Serdy said. “I think a lot of those kids remember that for years to come and they learn about things.”
Future water festivals could be filmed so that schools that can’t participate could have a virtual water festival, he said.
“Absolutely. We can get something online, even do some kind of class, a Zoom meeting or something like that with their classrooms where they can’t make it out to the park. It would be a good opportunity for us to still reach out to them about water,” Mr. Loggins said.
Budget-adoption schedule
The water district budget is to be discussed at a work session June 2. The draft adoption of the budget is slated for June 16 and a final budget vote July 7. All start at 6 p.m. in the council chambers, 300 E. Superstition Blvd.
Under a budget approved June 18, 2019, by the water district board, rates for customers within the city limits increased approximately 2% on Oct. 1, which translated to a bill increase of less than $1.30 a month for the average customer using less than 7,500 gallons per month. Rates for customers living in the county increased approximately 5%, which translated to a bill increase of approximately $3.30 a month for the average customer using less than 7,500 gallons per month.
Richard Dyer Managing Editor | East Valley @RHDyer
Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia, Inc.. USA, since 1987.
Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions.
He also is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows
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