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SOUTH JORDAN — Fred Lampropoulos felt inspired to change how handles his home's and business's landscaping based on a drive he took to Kamas last month.
The president and CEO of Merit Medical Systems saw the drying conditions and how they affected the land around Jordanelle Reservoir. He decided at the moment to cut the amount of water at his home in half and ordered the same for Merit Medical Systems' South Jordan campus.
The company also plans to have all of its grass removed by the end of the summer and replaced with more water-wise plants. Lampropoulos said it's actually an idea that was already in the works but Utah's drying conditions made clear how important it was to cut back on unneeded watering.
"I have never been more serious about this ... It needs action, not later on and not for somebody else but for you," he said.
His commitment is something that state leaders are hoping from other businesses across Utah amid possibly the worst drought in the state's history. They launched the "Water Champions H2Oath" on Monday, which is a program that encourages businesses to commit to improved water conservation and water-wise practices.
Gov. Spencer Cox said the state wants businesses to help out as Utah leaders to find ways to cut down on water consumption in the same way as Lampropoulos pledged. The governor argued there are many businesses in Utah that have "unnecessary" grass that's more decorative than anything else.
"As with every problem we've had in the history of the state of Utah, we turn to our business community to partner (with) to solve those problems ... and you're going to see what's possible from some of our best partners — how we can make our buildings beautiful without using excessive water, without having lush green grass everywhere," he said, speaking at an event along with a handful of Utah business leaders that have already signed onto the pledge. "There are ways we can do this better."
Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance, explained that businesses can participate by going to the Salt Lake Chamber website and agreeing to take the pledge to be more water-efficient. Those who take the pledge agree to use Utah Division of Water Resources guidelines for water efficiency, such as watering just twice a week — three times in southern Utah — and avoiding any watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Businesses also agree to audit and repair their irrigation systems to make them more efficient and to shut off all manual irrigation during rain and wind events. Other parts of the pledge include limiting turf by using water-wise plants instead.
"We're asking business leaders to be an advocate for water efficiency by setting an example, and help to educate friends and neighbors on the importance of water conservation," Miller said. "We're confident, by implementing these measures and supported by a statewide collective effort, that all of us together can successfully navigate this drought (and) be more effective than ever before when it comes to our water conservation."
Leaders rolled out the pledge as the U.S. Drought Monitor reported last week that Utah's drought is slowly worsening. It reports that at least 92.5% of the state is at least within an "extreme" drought while 65.2% is an "exceptional" drought. That's up from 90.2% and 64%, respectively, from the previous week.
All parts of the state are considered to be in drought status with about 99.4% considered in at least "severe" drought status. It's the driest conditions Utah's had since the monitor was established in 1999.
There was some relief from the sky last week that didn't factor into that report. Storms that moved into the state provided more rain than was originally expected, leaving many places in the state with 0.25 inches or more Thursday. Grantsville receiving the most at 1.1 inches of rain, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather service forecast calls for more rain in Utah this week; however, many more storms are needed before conditions improve. Utah has thankfully avoided massive fires so far in the fire season but that could change soon. Cox warns large-scale fires "are coming" if there aren't significant changes in Utah's weather patterns, especially since July and August are typically the hottest and driest months of the year for most parts of the state.
Barring dramatic weather shifts in the state's favor, Utah leaders plan to continue pushing measures that encourage water conservation. The governor said he's aware Utahns are likely tired of having to hear about it but it's an issue that's likely not going anywhere soon.
"We're going to continue to talk about the drought until we don't have to talk about the drought," he said. "Repetition, I think, is important to help people understand how low our water levels are and how high the fire danger is right now."
A few Utah business leaders were also on hand Monday to describe efforts they are taking to reduce water consumption in addition to Lampropoulos. Dave Petersen, president and CEO of OC Tanner, said the company removed seven "inefficient" fountains from its campus in recent years and found ways to cut back on water use during manufacturing. Martin Ritter, CEO of Stadler Rail, said the company designed its campus with rocks replacing grass and also urinals inside that don't use water.
Chris Gamvroulas, president of Ivory Development, said his company tried implementing water-wise landscaping called "localscaping." It was originally met with pushback in the market but Ivory Homes found that the tides turned and now includes it with new homes. With an estimate of 600 homes built per year, he said that change saves about 33 million gallons of water annually.
"We believe it's important not only for the sustainability of our state and general environment but for the sustainability, attainability and affordability of housing because, for every one of those homes they're not watering their lawns, we're saving them a lot of money they would be paying to water their lawns," he said, adding that cutting back on water and energy costs can save homeowners about $200 per month or $2,400 every year.
While Monday's event focused on businesses, Cox pointed that Utah still encourages residents to cut back on watering their lawns too.
Paying to remove grass?
Other efforts underway to cut water waste go beyond anything brought up during the event. For instance, Zach Renstrom, with the Washington County Water Conservancy District, appeared on KSL NewsRadio's "Dave and Dujanovic" show Monday morning to discuss a program that would pay Washington County homeowners for some of the costs of removing grass from their lawns.
The agency already offers rebates for a host of other items that could reduce water use, such as incentives for businesses to switch to plumbing fixtures that use less water, as well as rebates for homeowners who upgrade irrigation systems, purchase a low-flow toilet or even plant water-efficient trees among other things. Its leaders are still evaluating the costs and benefits of implementing rebates for removing grass but Renstrom said they are prepared to offer $1 per square foot removed.
Homeowners would then be able to add water-wise efficient landscaping, like cactus, Joshua trees or any other plants that don't need too much water. If the district goes through with it, it may result in hundreds of thousands of dollars given to homeowners — but that, Renstrom argues, beats the alternative.
"Water is expensive. It's expensive to bring new sources on so if we can pay someone to conserve that water, that actually saves the regular taxpayer because it allows us to use our system more efficiently," he said. "Then we don't have to put in so many expensive projects in the long run."
