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California Bay Area School Returns $111,000 of Water Savings to District

“We achieved break-even on our investment in the first 8 months”

— David Radke, Director of Facilities Maintenance

$111,000

savings in 6 months

36 million gallons

of water saved annually

System payback

in 8 months


CHALLENGE

Campbell Union School District, located in the California San Francisco Bay Area, includes 12 schools serving the communities of Campbell, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, San Jose, Santa Clara, and Saratoga. From preschool to eighth grade, the district hosts more than 7,300 students and features high academic standards and achievement. The school district has a reputation for responsible fiscal management and identified water use efficiency technology as an opportunity to reduce costs and maximize staff productivity. The district requested a water use audit from the Santa Clara Valley Water District to identify opportunities for water savings. The Water District recommended several technologies and concluded that smart irrigation controllers would provide the greatest water and cost savings. Based on these results, the school district decided to address landscape irrigation first.

SOLUTION

The process of improving their irrigation system included the installation of 45 WeatherTRAK smart controllers on all 12 campuses covering 100 acres of turf. The use of which eliminated landscape water waste by automatically adjusting irrigation schedules based on plant needs and local weather conditions. The result was an annual savings of 36 million gallons of water and $111,000 to the district’s bottom line. The WeatherTRAK smart water management platform provides advance reporting capabilities giving them complete control over outdoor water use, and providing water budget monitoring and reporting. Additionally, when field issues arise, such as disconnected sprinkler valves, the team is immediately alerted via text messages, which avoids catastrophic water loss and eliminates the need for additional site visits.

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