Water Efficiency: The Journal for Water Resource Management

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1 Water Efficiency: The Journal for Water Resource Management All Bets Are Off One of the most extensive water conservation and reuse efforts is underway at one of the most popular tourist destinations in the US: Las Vegas. By Carol Brzozowski Tourist destinations are a mecca for recreation and leisure, but also are sites where large quantities of water are used. Water attractions, water served in restaurants, and water in hotels used for showering and washing linens and clothes it all has the potential for waste. Recognizing that, tourist destinations throughout the US have identified areas where water conservation measures can be employed without compromising the entertainment value and comfort of tourists. All of the water used indoors in the Las Vegas Valley anything that hits the sewer system [washers, dishwashers, sinks, bathtubs, toilets, and swimming pool drains, for example] is recaptured and cleansed to a very high level and returned via the Las Vegas Wash to Lake Mead, notes Scott Huntley, public information manager for the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA)/Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD). Some of the water is reused for golf courses and construction dust control, and is not quite as highly cleansed, he adds. The region s actions are taken, because, for every gallon of water we return to Lake Mead, we are allowed by a Colorado River agreement to take an additional gallon back out of Lake Mead for use, Huntley says. While our consumptive use of the Colorado River is just below 270,000 acre-feet because we bring back to Lake Mead about 230,000 acre-feet we can actually withdraw nearly 500,000 acre-feet per year, he adds. This is the power of reclamation and reuse of water, and is

2 something only Las Vegas is doing on this scale. It dramatically stretches the water supply by pretty much taking all indoor use and swimming pools except for evaporation, which we try to beat with pool covers out of the equation. Huntley points out that such an innovative method is necessary for large-population centers throughout the Southwest, to say nothing of Las Vegas draw of 30 million visitors each year, in order to stretch water supplies during drought periods. Station Casino's individual properties have engaged in site-specific water conservation measures, like replacing grass with desert landscaping. Many of the casinos in the area are onboard with water conservation. Case in point: Station Casinos Inc. Station Casinos has 16 properties located off the Strip throughout southern Nevada. The casinos draw 30% of its visitors from throughout the world and 70% from the local communities the opposite of the percentage draw from Strip-located casinos. The Station Casinos offer a variety of entertainment amenities that include such offerings as food courts, restaurants, movie theaters, ice-skating rinks, and bowling alleys. Water is used everywhere, including hotel rooms, pools, restaurants, food and beverage operations, and external water features. Huntley calls Station Casinos an important contributor to the SNWA s water conservation collation of businesses in the area. I would like to think that we help set an example for the rest of the business community, because we do xeriscaping and desert landscaping, says Lesley Pittman, former vice president of corporate and government relations for Station Casinos. If we even have ornamental turf, it s in very minute quantities in each of our properties. Another measure that Station Casinos takes is only serving water in its restaurant upon request. I was having lunch at a restaurant in town, and they immediately brought water, and I thought, They re not supposed to be doing that, says Pittman. Not that it s mandated, but it s the right thing to do. Station Casinos was the first hotel casino in southern Nevada to sign on to the SNWA program that places signage in all hotel rooms notifying guests that linens will be changed daily only upon request. Additionally, the hotel conducted a comprehensive review of its water usage and has taken measures to create efficiencies in water use. Its extensive network of water conservation measures is not only companywide, but also site specific. For example, companywide measures include not only the linen exchange program and serving water in restaurants only upon request, but also: Reduced overall consumption by an average of 20,000 gallons per month per property by installing advanced water treatment systems, new automatic faucets, and low-flow toilets

3 Receiving the Water Conservation All Star Award from Henderson Water Watchers in The city of Henderson s water award program recognizes and honors voluntary contributions of individuals, organizations, and businesses that demonstrate leadership in water conservation efforts. The publication of quarterly employee newsletter articles feature watering schedules and tips on how to conserve water. Meanwhile, Station Casinos individual properties have engaged in site-specific water conservation measures. At the Santa Fe Station Hotel & Casino, more than 127,000 square feet of grass was removed, with the area converted to high-density desert landscaping featuring a smart drip system. That measure culminated in a savings of more than 6.5 million gallons of water per year. While water used for the property s cooling systems is not recovered, a more costly chemical is used that helps to conserve more water and save equipment life, which has resulted in a water consumption reduction of 4 million gallons per year, notes Pittman. The Palace Station Hotel & Casino removed grass, sprinklers, and planters from one of its parking lots, and replaced some grass in other areas with desert landscaping. In 1998, it also received the LVVWD Water Hero Award for its water conservation of 10 million gallons a year. The Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa installed a computerized central watering system, the Rain Master Evolution The system monitors for broken sprinklerheads, pipes, and other factors, and can be reset to meet changing climate conditions. By reducing the watering times on all sprinkler stations by just one minute, the Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa saved 6,080 gallons of water in the first month. Resort officials also invited SNWA representatives to speak with other property tenants regarding water conservation measures to recruit the entire property to participate in the resort s efforts.

4 At the Fiesta Rancho Casino & Hotel, all landscape is high-density desert with a drip system. There is no grass left on the property. The Texas Station Gambling Hall and Hotel also utilizes high-density desert landscaping. The Fiesta Rancho Casino & Hotel installed a pre-cooler on seven large airconditioning units to eliminate some of the wasted water during summer months. At the Texas Station Gambling Hall and Hotel, lowconsumption showerheads were installed and cooling towers were rebuilt to improve efficiencies for less evaporation in the cooling tower. The grass, at an area on property owned by the Sunset Station Hotel & Casino, was replaced with desert landscaping. Almost all of the grass at Boulder Station Hotel & Casino was removed and converted to desert landscaping. Boulder Station also installed water conservation showerheads. Station Casino s water conservation efforts netted a Water Hero Award from the Water District in 1998, for its efforts in saving 10 million gallons of water a year. Pittman had helped to conduct that campaign. It was designed to speak to the residents of southern Nevada, because 60% of water usage in our valley is done by residents, and most of it is used outdoors inefficiently, she says. We started a campaign by the year 2000 to save 25% of our water usage, and the water district exceeded that goal. These days, the Water Conservation Collation is focused on the business community, initiating similar programs to generate awareness about how to better conserve water. One of the reasons Station [Casinos] has been a member of the Water Conservation Collation for many years is we ve always recognized that we live in a desert and have to do things differently water is not an infinite resource for us, says Pittman. She adds that Las Vegas casinos recognize that, if the region is to continue to experience the large level The desert landscaping and smart drip system saved over 6.5 million gallons of water a year. of economic prosperity it enjoys and remain a world-class tourist destination as well as continue to offer a high-level quality of life for people to raise families We have to be responsible residents, whether we are members of the business community, a family that lives

5 here, elected officials, or whomever, says Pittman. We need to get our arms around every opportunity and put it into action to conserve water; it doesn t make any sense for us not to. Take a look at what some other communities may be doing, that s been successful, she continues. We have to be creative in ways that we can address this, so that we can ensure continued economic prosperity, but also be realists in terms of what our water resources are. Las Vegas has not only been a draw for tourists, but its resident population continues to make it one of the fastest-growing regions in the US, as many people who visit there return to live there. Water is going to become a bigger political issue, says Pittman. Most certainly, it s going to become a greater economic issue over the course of the next 25 years. You re seeing a huge migration from the central United States and the Northeast down to the Southwest, and with this migration comes greater demand on the water resources. People aren t going to go where there s no water, so we may see down the road migration back to those areas, she says. We need to make sure people who visit our community see the conservation efforts we are making and if they are going to be struggling with these issues down the road maybe they don t live in a desert, but they may have water resources challenges in their own communities so maybe they can learn from us. Author's Bio: Journalist Carol Brzozowski lives in Coral Springs, FL.