Even with parts of California receiving some much needed drought relief thanks to El Nino, drought still has a firm grasp on much of the state and is affecting agriculture, business, and residents of the state.
As a result, builders and developers are beginning to take the long-term and short-term effects of drought into consideration when developing new home developments, Proudgreenhome.com reports.
One example of this is the Spring Mountain Ranch master planned community in Riverside, Calif. The community has a number of measures in place to conserve as much water as possible. The Spring Mountain ranch development team, iStar, KB Home, Riverside Highland, County of Riverside, CSA 126, Sitescapes, and other local municipalities are all working together to employ the water conservation solutions.
An irrigation system that controls the amount of water dispersed uses onsite weather station information to adjust run times and shut downs and can also automatically shut down the entire system if a leak or break occurs, minimizing water waste. The irrigation systems also direct water straight to the roots of the plants, which uses about 24 percent less water than a conventional overhead spray system.
Additionally, community landscaping measures, home landscaping and irrigation controls, fully integrated water-saving home technologies, and the refurbishment of two non-potable wells are among other efforts to limit water use.
The effects of the current drought will be felt for a long time after it ends, and, as Steve Magee writes, the fact that builders are looking to the future and realizing these water conservation features are not a novelty but a necessity is very important.
