Group targets restaurant water conservation

The Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District is promoting a campaign to conserve water one glass at a time.
The district, which is charged with managing the county's groundwater supply -- the sole source of water in Montomery County -- is targeting restaurants with an education effort to serve water only to patrons who request it. Every glass of water served takes four glasses to wash it.
The Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District hopes this voluntary water conservation program for Montgomery County restaurants is well received," said Kathy Turner Jones, general manger of the district. We ask that restaurants only serve water to patrons upon their request. We are not saying consumers can't have water, but if you do ask for water, please drink it and don't let it go to waste. Successful water conservation programs require that everyone do their part to save our precious resource."
As part of the effort, the district is offering table tents to restaurants on a first come, first served basis to educate patrons on this simple conservation method.
Montgomery County's water supply is limited," said the message on the table tent. That's why we serve water only when customers request itjust one way we can all save this valuable community resource."
The water glass is just one of the ways that restaurants can be targeted to conserve water and save money in water and electric bills, said Marjie Risk, education/public awareness coordinator for the district.
Another huge area of water waste in restaurants is in the pre-rinse spray valves. The valves are used to rinse food particle off plates and dishes before they are placed in the dishwasher.
Older spray valves use up to four gallons a minute and don't do a good job at cleaning plates and utensils, Risk said Newer values, which operate at 1.2 million gallons a minute, provide greater pressure and efficiency and came save 50 percent on water costs, Risk said.
It's a five minute retrofit," Risk said. Business owners can save both water and energy and see a savings on their bills."
Another high volume water user is food steamers, which are utilized to steam vegetables or pasta. The device can use up to 40 gallons an hour, but recent options can do the job with relatively no water loss, Risk said.
Many other newer water saving options are available to restaurants, including efficient commercial dishwasher, low flow toilets and even a waterless wok, which is being tested in Australia, Risk said.
We know they need to do business and that budgets are tight, but this is a way they can save money," Risk said.
The Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District has been promoting conservation through its Water IQ program, which offers billboards and envelop stuffers with simple messages for residents to saving money, such as turning off water when brushing teeth, watering lawns only a inch a week, and installing low flow toilets.
This is one of the first campaigns targeted to the business community.
Montgomery County is facing dwindling underground water supplies and the Lone Star District has mandated that large water providers in the county those permitted to use more than 10 million gallons a year reduce their reliance on groundwater by 30 percent by 2016.
The Lone Star District is encouraging conservation measures in its rules, providing credits to water providers who save water before the imposed deadline so they can use them in future years.
Restaurants can save water
The Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District is targeting local restaurants in its latest conservation campaign. The district is offering table tents to restaurants to encourage water to be served by request only. Following is the information provided on the cards.
Did You Know?
Did you know it takes four glasses of water to clean just one? Montgomery County's water supply is limited. That's why we serve water only when customers request it just one way we can all help save this valuable community resource. Learn more way to make it last at WaterIQ.org.
Source: Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District