Tools and Trainings

QWEL

QUALIFIED WATER EFFICIENT LANDSCAPER

Be water efficient. Become a qualified water efficient landscaper or look through the resource list to find someone who can help you. Click the link below to learn more.

AWE Conservation Tracking Tool

• Develop long-range conservation plans. Construct conservation portfolios containing up to 50 separate conservation program activities.
• Quickly compare alternative conservation measures in terms of their water savings potential, impact on system costs, and potential benefits to utility customers.
• Track the implementation, water savings, costs, and benefits of actual conservation activities over time.
• Evaluate a utility’s changing revenue requirement with conservation.
• Estimate the reduction in GHG emissions resulting from plumbing/energy codes and conservation program activity.

Jumpstart Water Shortage Toolkit

Water shortage contingency plans (WSCP) have been required as part of the water contingency analysis specified by the California Water Code 10632 since the early 1980s for urban water suppliers.1 Having a developed WSCP is an essential part of being prepared to respond to water shortages in a timely manner. This tool will provide an overview of WSCP development, reference resources and tools, and provide examples of WSCPs from around the state with the goal of helping agencies develop a WSCP quickly or refine an existing plan.2 The DWR Urban Drought Guidebook (2008) and the (2011) AWWA M60: Drought Preparedness and Response Manual are key resources for developing and implementing a WSCP. This tool will refer to these key resources, but does not seek to duplicate them.

Home Water Works Calculator

The Home Water Works web site was created by the Alliance for Water Efficiency and was made possible by a grant from The Home Depot Foundation. The water calculator was originally created by The Field Museum and was modified for this web site by the Alliance for Water Efficiency in cooperation with The Field Museum.

The Water Calculator was originally designed and built in 2009 by the staff of The Field Museum and the Iona Group. The Field Museum team was led by Johanna Thompson and Krystal Villanosa who leveraged assets provided by the City of Chicago Department of Water Management and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago. In 2010, the Alliance for Water Efficiency teamed with The Field Museum to enhance the Water Calculator for the Home Water Works web site.

BMP Reporting Resources

CalWEP has archived all of the California Urban Water Conservation Council (CUWCC) resources on Best Management Practices or, BMPs. This includes:

BMP 1: Utility Operations
BMP 2: Public Education & School Education
BMP 3: Residential Programs
BMP 4: Commercial, Industrial, and Industrial Programs
BMP 5: Landscape Programs

Planning Tools & Models

Members of CalWEP have free or reduced cost access to several planning tools and models. To access these tools, log into MyCalWEP or contact CalWEP staff.

• Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA) Tool Spreadsheet
• Decision Support System (DSS) Model
• Direct Utility Avoided Costs/Environmental Benefits Models