projects home	This site under reconstruction   Water Conservation Credit Program - Overview The Central Utah Project Completion Act, Section 207, Water Management Improvement, directs CUWCD to prepare a Water Management Improvement Plan (Plan). The Plan includes the establishment of a water conservation goal and the Water Conservation Credit Program (Credit Program). The Credit Program fulfills the requirements of the Act directing CUWCD to develop a continuous process for the identification, evaluation and implementation of water conservation measures. Downloadable brochure in PDF format (print to 11x17) The original Plan was submitted to the Secretary of Interior on January 1, 1995. A three year update, entitled "1998 Supplement to the Water Management Improvement Plan" was published in January 1998, to be followed by the 2001 Supplement published in June of 2000. The supplement includes modifications to the Credit Program, a revised water conservation goal, an inventory of water conservation measures, an assessment of perviously implemented projects, a comparative analysis of proposed water conservation measures, and a five-year schedule of implementation of water conservation measures. The Credit Program serves two purposes. One purpose of the Credit Program is to identify, evaluate and implement water conservation measures that maximize the efficient use of existing water supplies and aid CUWCD in monitoring progress toward meeting the District-wide water conservation goal of approximately 75,000 acre-feet of water per year, which is to be achieved by the year 2010. Another purpose is to allocate $50 million in authorized federal monies (maximum 65% federal cost share / minimum 35% local cost share) to fund the implementation of conservation measures. While not all conservation measures selected by CUWCD will require federal funds, in order to be "credited" toward achieving the conservation goal, all conservation measures must be processed through the Credit Program. Any person, group, or organization with an idea for a project that conserves water and meets the minimum requirements of the program is eligible to participate in the Credit Program. However, not all projects submitted will be selected for funding. All projects must first successfully complete all elements of the Credit Program. The elements include: Application CUWCD/Applicant consultation Feasibility Study NEPA compliance Active Inventory Prioritization Selection for funding Implementation and assessment To Date Since the Credit Program was established in July 1993, 99 applications for water conservation measures have been received. These projects range in size and type. Most of the projects submitted to date are for agricultural conservation. Projects include conversion from flood irrigation to sprinkler irrigation and piping or lining of canal and ditches. Municipal and industrial conservation projects include construction of pressurized secondary systems, recycling or water reuse, central control systems and plumbing retrofit projects. Of the 99 projects, 38 projects have successfully completed all the steps of the Credit Program and have been placed on the "Active Inventory" and 26 have been funded through FY2000 (June 2000). The Active Inventory consists of projects which were found to be cost-effective, without significant adverse impact to the financial integrity of the District or a petitioner, environmentally acceptable and in the public interest. Once a year CUWCD prioritizes and ranks these projects for funding.