Water conservation a necessity in housing areas

  • Published
  • By Gary Hatch
  • 95th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Edwards' newest housing development features newly constructed homes with central air conditioning, double-car garages, abundant storage, plenty of natural light and more living space than the homes they replaced, base officials said.
 
The homes also are designed to be both energy and water efficient. 

Most of the energy efficiencies are not visible, but some of the water conservation efforts are -- for example, front yards that feature a variety of desert plants and shrubs. They also have decorative rock and decomposed granite rather than grass. The houses have lawns in the back yards, but not the front.
 
This follows Air Force guidance and a commitment by the base that began several years ago to make water conservation a priority.
 
"The reality is that we live in an extreme climate," said James Judkins, Director of the Civil Engineer and Transportation Directorate at Edwards. "We face shrinking resources and mandated utility cutbacks that place unique limits on our sustainable development here at Edwards." 

"It is essential that we conserve water for the sustainability of the base," he said. 

The need to conserve water was highlighted last month when California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought and called for a 20 percent reduction in water use across the state. 

"Water is a scarce resource - and it's becoming more so every year," Mr. Judkins said.
 
"This is a way for the base to conserve. Throughout California and the rest of the Southwest, communities are adopting requirements for drought-resistant landscaping." 

The base's water use more than doubles in the summer months, when daytime temperatures are usually in the high 90s to low 100s. Monthly water use in 2007 was in the 80-million-gallon range during the winter months, ballooning to over 200 million gallons in July, the peak month last year. 

Each year the base gets about half its water from wells and about half from surface water brought to the base from the Antelope Valley East Kern Water Agency, Mr. Judkins said. 

The base also reclaims water from its wastewater treatment plant to irrigate some of the green areas on base. All the reclaimed water is used in the summer and most of it is used in the winter months, Mr, Judkins said. 

"The desert landscaping may take some getting used to at first," said Jeanette White, base housing manager. "But after a few years the desert plants grow and mature, and the yards take on their own kind of beauty." 

There are 109 new homes now completed in this housing development, Tamarisk Plains and Acacia Hills. The base will be adding 127 more homes over the next 18 months, Mrs. White said. 

When finished, these subdivisions will have some centralized green areas with grass, play equipment and covered picnic areas. 

All the housing units, in addition to being new, feature central air conditioning. The units they replaced had swamp coolers. 

The new housing units are 1,824-2,020 square feet. The old units were 1,382-1,614 square feet. 

The new houses have two-car garages with extra storage space in the garages. The homes they replaced had single-car garages. 

In addition to the extra storage in the garage, there is also a storage room inside the homes. 

"Like every other housing project we've ever had here, we've had to make some trade-offs. But these homes have some great features going for them and are a huge improvement over the homes they replaced," Mrs. White said.