Wholly H2O - Mainstreaming Efficient Water (Re)Use

During the holiday season, more than ever, our thoughts turn gratefully to those who have made our progress possible. Thank you!

Please join us Friday, December 16th from 5 to 8 PM for our first ever holiday party, co-hosted with neighbors at our new space in Mission Social.

Wholly H2O was part of a coalition of local organizations, Bay Area Water Stewards (BAWS) and San Francisco Urban Agriculture Alliance (SFUAA), that co-sponsored and supported last Monday's SF mayoral forum specifically targeting issues related to the city's management of its water, urban agriculture and green schoolyard initiatives. While turnout from the public was high, only four of 16 candidates showed up. While the city lauds itself as being at the forefront of these issues, are its mayoral candidates providing vision and leadership on issues surrounding sustainability?

Read more from the candidates' pertaining to their positions on the city's management of water resources, urban agriculture and schoolyard greening.

 

 

Thanks to our Board of Advisor member, Sonia Diermayer, Wholly H2O was one of the contributors to the crafting of AB 275, Rainwater Capture Act of 2011. This legislation makes it legal for all Californian's to capture rainwater, thus decreasing stormwater runoff, increasing groundwater infiltration, and offsetting unnecessary potable water use for things like landscape watering. We consider this legislation a no brainer for California, a state whose water sources and their ecosystems are over taxed and under cared for.

Yet, there are bill opponents talking directly to the Governor and asking him to veto the bill. We would like to see as many people as possible contact the Governor to request a signature. Please support AB 275, Rainwater Capture Act of 2011 by writing Gov Brown. While sending an email may be easier, it is more influential to send actual letters.

Governor Jerry Brown
c/o State Capitol, Suite 1173
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 445-2841
Fax: (916) 558-3160

Or on his website where AB 275 is listed as an issue in a drop-down menu.

 

LOVE this quote by sailor Brad Van Liew: "Perhaps our planet should have been named "Ocean" rather than "Earth" given that the majority of Earth is comprised of water not land: seventy-one percent to be precise. Humans are also comprised mostly of water, a strikingly analogous seventy percent."

There is a new greywater resource available from the San Francisco Public Utility Commission! The San Francisco Graywater Design Manual is available to be downloaded here.

If you don't know how much water you are using, how will you know if you are cutting down on your water use by using Wholly H2o's tips for efficiency and appropriate water use and reuse?  AB 19 will create more opportunities for water users to be informed through metering.

Be part of this pioneering study! The Urban Farmer Store is helping the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) conduct a pilot study of laundry-to-landscape graywater systems in San Francisco. We are looking for residents of a single-family home or a two-unit residential building to join our small pilot program.

Managers and owners of commercial or large residential properties can get help identifying leaks or other ways to improve their water efficiency through a free irrigation checkup program offered by the San Diego County Water Authority and Bureau of Reclamation.

DWR has released the final version of the Guidebook to Assist Urban Water Suppliers to Prepare a 2010 Urban Water Management Plan. The book is designed to assist urban water suppliers with at least 3,000 service connections or supplying at least 3,000 acre-feet of water per year. In the coming weeks, the DWR urban water management website will be adding a section with answers to questions received about the guidebook.