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Ahwahnee Water Principles

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The Local Government Commission invited a group of water experts from the federal, state and local levels to craft a set of land use principles that would provide guidance to communities concerned about future water supplies. In March 2005, the principles were presented at the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite to an audience of more than 100 elected officials. They consist of nine community principles and five implementation principles

The Ahwahnee Water Principles advocate a change in land use planning to create the compact, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods and town centers that are growing in popularity with young adults and seniors as a place to live. They promote the preservation of untouched watersheds because this is the land that collects and cleanses water, replenishes groundwater supplies and provides us with potable water.

The principles call for making more efficient use of the water supply via water recycling and conservation strategies, such as low-flow toilets and drought-tolerant landscapes. They advocate urban planning that reduces paved, nonporous areas by using narrower streets and smaller or multi-storied parking lots, and they recommend using newly available porous concrete and asphalt.

The principles promote recessed (recreation areas and attractive water features where water can be held temporarily during periods of heavy rainfall, and encourage more natural methods of channeling and cleansing water by using drainage swales, streams and ponds.

1 Ahwahnee Water Principles text
2 In practice
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

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Ahwahnee Water Principles text

The Ahwahnee Principles

Preamble

Cities and counties are facing major challenges with water contamination, storm water runoff, flood damage liability, and concerns about whether there will be enough reliable water for current residents as well as for new development. These issues impact city and county budgets and taxpayers. Fortunately there are a number of stewardship actions that cities and counties can take that reduce costs and improve the reliability and quality of our water resources.

The Water Principles below complement the Ahwahnee Principles for Resource-Efficient Communities that were developed in 1991. Many cities and counties are already using them to improve the vitality and prosperity of their communities.

Community Principles

1. Community design should be compact, mixed use, walkable and transit-oriented so that automobile-generated urban runoff pollutants are minimized and the open lands that absorb water are preserved to the maximum extent possible. (See the Ahwahnee Principles for Resource-Efficient Communities)

2. Natural resources such as wetlands, flood plains, recharge zones, riparian areas, open space, and native habitats should be identified, preserved and restored as valued assets for flood protection, water quality improvement, groundwater recharge, habitat, and overall long-term water resource sustainability.

3. Water holding areas such as creek beds, recessed athletic fields, ponds, cisterns, and other features that serve to recharge groundwater, reduce runoff, improve water quality and decrease flooding should be incorporated into the urban landscape.

4. All aspects of landscaping from the selection of plants to soil preparation and the installation of irrigation systems should be designed to reduce water demand, retain runoff, decrease flooding, and recharge groundwater.

5. Permeable surfaces should be used for hardscape. Impervious surfaces such as driveways, streets, and parking lots should be minimized so that land is available to absorb storm water, reduce polluted urban runoff, recharge groundwater and reduce flooding.

6. Dual plumbing that allows graywater from showers, sinks and washers to be reused for landscape irrigation should be included in the infrastructure of new development.

7. Community design should maximize the use of recycled water for appropriate applications including outdoor irrigation, toilet flushing, and commercial and industrial processes. Purple pipe should be installed in all new construction and remodeled buildings in anticipation of the future availability of recycled water.

8. Urban water conservation technologies such as low-flow toilets, efficient clothes washers, and more efficient water-using industrial equipment should be incorporated in all new construction and retrofitted in remodeled buildings.

9. Ground water treatment and brackish water desalination should be pursued when necessary to maximize locally available, drought-proof water supplies.

Implementation Principles

1. Water supply agencies should be consulted early in the land use decision-making process regarding technology, demographics and growth projections.

2. City and county officials, the watershed council, LAFCO, special districts and other stakeholders sharing watersheds should collaborate to take advantage of the benefits and synergies of water resource planning at a watershed level.

3. The best, multi-benefit and integrated strategies and projects should be identified and implemented before less integrated proposals, unless urgency demands otherwise.

4. From start to finish, projects and programs should involve the public, build relationships, and increase the sharing of and access to information.

5. Plans, programs, projects and policies should be monitored and evaluated to determine if the expected results are achieved and to improve future practices.

Authors: Celeste Cantu, Martha Davis, Jennifer Hosterman, Susan Lien Longville, Jeff Loux, John Lowrie, Jonas Minton, Mary Nichols, Virginia Porter, Al Wanger, Robert Wilkinson, Kevin Wolf

Editor: Judy Corbett

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In practice

Cities, counties and organizations that have adopted the Ahwahnee Water Principles:

Marin County, California; Marin Municipal Water District, California; Menlo Park, California; Morgan Hill, CCalifornia; Palo Alto, California; Petaluma, California; Port Hueneme, California; Richmond, California; Rohnert Park, California; Rolling Hills Estates, California; San Luis Obispo, California; Santa Paula, California; Santa Rosa, California; Windsor, California; Ventura, California; Ventura County, California.

Organizations that have endorsed the Ahwahnee Principles:

Bay Area Water Forum and Association of Bay Area Governments (CalFed Task Force); League of California Cities; Southern California Association of Governments Water Policy Task Force.

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