Note: When we started the What the Framework Blog, our mission was to make this years-long process more accessible to all water conservation curious people across California. As this process moves from the Department of Water Resources to the State Water Resources Control Board, we will continue to keep the WTF blog updated. For current information on the indoor standard and water loss, head over to the blog.
Lisa Cuellar, Director of Programs
California Water Efficiency Partnership
October 11, 2022
Below is a summary of DWR’s recent Long Term Framework recommendations to the State Water Board as submitted on Thursday, September 29, 2022. These recommendations address the following:
Note that these recommendations are subject to change per the final rulemaking process that allows for additional evaluation and public comment. The State Water Board is expected to initiate final rulemaking in early 2023, as announced at CalWEP’s fall Plenary on September 8, 2022.
If a supplier opts to install an in-lieu technology rather than a DIM (or equivalent), they must also implement BMPs for communication, irrigation system maintenance and irrigation scheduling. Date for compliance is within 5 years following the first year of landscape measurement.
d. Develop a CII BMP implementation program specific to a supplier’s service area and target to CII accounts that exceed the following thresholds:
BMP implementation must address each of the following categories: Outreach, technical assistance, and education; incentives; landscape; collaboration and coordination; and operational. Suppliers must also document increased water use efficiency after implementation. BMPs must be implemented within 3 years of rule adoption. Note that alternative pathways could be considered for suppliers who have long-term CII programs where additional savings may not be achievable.
Recommends the 8 established variances identified in the 2018 legislation and calls to refine two of the established eight variances as follows:
Recommend an additional variance for “significant use of water for home use medical devices” but defer until a time when this categorical water use has a material effect on a supplier’s Urban Water Use Objective (UWUO).
Recommended methodology is largely based on Option 2a, also known as the “Last-in-First-Out Inclusive Water Loss Criteria Methodology” (as described in the working group materials) with some modifications.* A template for calculating an eligible bonus incentive has been developed and will be modified by DWR following rule adoption. Direct Potable Reuse (DPR) methodology should be deferred until the State Water Board adopts criteria and regulations for permitting, as required by AB 774 (Quirk) of 2017. Until such time, DPR should not be allowed.
*CalWEP is requesting clarity on this and will update this blog post with more details soon.
Comprehensive guidelines and methodologies for calculating the UWUO will be contained in DWR’s forthcoming full recommendation report, with no public release date currently cited. In addition, methodologies for the following will also be provided:
Supplier’s water usage must remain below SB X7-7 targets including during the transition to an UWUO. For those suppliers whose total UWUO and excluded demands, such as CII indoor water use and CII outdoor use not connected to a DIM, exceeds the SB X7-7 targets, DWR recommends that the State Board adjust components of their UWUOs to prevent backsliding from their 2020 targets.