Mayors Water Council

Newsletter of the Mayors Water Council of The United States Conference of Mayors

Winter 2008

McKinney (TX) Partners with Texas

A&M University System Experts

to Integrate Science-Based Water

Conservation Program

out to 350,000 and reduce its

By McKinney (TX) Mayor Bill Whitfield

water use to only 140-160 gal-

-

Like most North Texas cities in 2006, the City of McKinney

lons per capita per day when

imposed irrigation restrictions on water use to help stave off the

the average water use in the

draining effects of a stubborn seven-year drought. Watering

Dallas Metroplex is approxi-

-

was limited to specific days and hours. Property owners in some

mately 240 gallons per capita

cities were fined for failing to comply with restrictions and oth-

per day.

McKinney (TX) Mayor Bill

ers paid premiums in their bills when their water use exceeded

Whitfield

A Partnership

a specified amount. The McKinney City Council soon realized

that much more had to be done, and that scientifically-proven

Strategy

solutions were needed so residential and commercial property

owners could conserve water as the City continued to grow.

City officials had no idea how to dramatically reduce per

capita water consumption, so we turned to the Urban Solutions

McKinney's Water Woes

Center (Center) in Dallas (one of 13 centers in Texas that house

people and programs of the Texas Agricultural Experiment Sta-

McKinney has no choice other than institutionalizing water

tion, the Texas Cooperative Extension, state agencies, and part

conservation practices. It is the second fastest growing city in

of the Texas A&M University System) for help. They have the

the country (among cities of 100,000 or more). Its population

research capability and expertise to help McKinney through

reached 100,000 in 2005 and is projected to reach 350,000

the crisis. The City and the Center established a partnership to

in the next 20-25 years.

solve the problem in the Fall of 2006. The City Council voted to

The City buys its water from the North Texas Municipal

spend $100,000 per year on the project.

Water District, which supplies water to twelve other munici-

The Center has many experts to call upon. Clint Wolfe, Proj-

palities that are also members of the District and to 49 cities

ect Manager with the Urban Solutions Center stated that "The

that have water supply contracts with the District. The frighten-

Center can deliver complete solutions using the experience of

ing fact is that the North Texas Municipal Water District will

other cities in Texas that have had success with solutions. We

be hard pressed to keep pace with the rapid growth of Collin

will verify and then bring these solutions, and new technolo-

County, the eighth fastest growing county in the United States.

gies and other information together for use by the citizens of

The City got a severe scare in July, 2005, when the District's

McKinney." Wolfe also stated that "San Antonio in the last 20

main line was ruptured in Wylie, a neighboring city. Water

years has gone a long way in reducing their per capita con-

immediately stopped flowing to McKinney and water stored

sumption, and this is what McKinney plans to do, and McKin-

in the elevated tanks and the ground storage reservoirs was

ney is the first city in the Metroplex to spend significant money

the only water available. The city imposed an immediate ban

to make this water-use reduction happen."

on all non-essential water use, including lawn irrigations, con-

Under the agreement, the Urban Solutions Center will use

struction-related water use, half-day closures to restaurants

City funds to prepare proposals to solicit grant and contract

within the city, and residents being asked to limit water use

funding from federal and state agencies for financing scientists

within their homes. When the water flow from the District was

as they perform research and develop programs to help the

restored, the City's supply of water was nearly depleted.

City meet its water conservation goals.

Within days of the pipe's repair, the City Council stepped

A critical component of the Center's work will be to intro-

up plans to build reserve tanks to protect the City from drought

duce McKinney water users to demonstrated drought-resistant

and disrupted water supplies in the future. Circumstances also

plants and grasses to conserve water used in outdoor irriga-

forced City Officials to come up with concrete plans to con-

serve water. Officials wanted to know how the City could build

see McKINNEY on page 10

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