The City of Boulder used 12% less water in 2023 than the previous five-year average, according to a city staff 2023 Year in Review presentation to the Water Resources Advisory Board on Jan. 22. Kim Hutton, the city’s water resources manager, attributed the decline to a rainy spring and early summer — meaning, Boulderites used less city water to keep their lawns green.
During the rainiest period from May to August, residents consumed 20% less water. “The start of summer was really, really rainy, and because of all that precipitation people weren’t needing to turn on their sprinklers to irrigate their lawns,” Hutton told Boulder Reporting Lab.
The report shows how water usage varies from year to year and is closely linked to precipitation levels. This variability is expected to increase with climate change altering precipitation patterns.
It also underscores just how much water ends up in landscaping in Boulder County.
Boulder Reporting Lab previously reported on Lafayette’s water rate hike, with residents expected to pay about 60% more for water in 2025 compared to 2023. This is primarily due to the need for a new water treatment plant. In the summer, Lafayette’s only water treatment plant operates close to its maximum capacity, mainly to handle residents’ lawn care.
“We only treat about 2 million gallons a day of water in the winter,” Lafayette’s utilities director, Jeff Arthur, said. “When people fire up their irrigation systems in the summer, we get up to about 10 million gallons a day.”
In a typical year, 40% of Boulder’s water is used on lawns, according to Hutton. “It does not cause concern right now for us,” she said. “Our planning projections include outdoor water use.”
Overall, water usage has been decreasing in Boulder since reaching a peak in 2000 and 2001. “Even with new development and population growth in Boulder, we are becoming more efficient in our practices,” Hutton said.
Efficiencies include water-saving features like low-flow shower-heads and toilets using less water along with residents using less for lawn maintenance. But the 20% reduction during the rainy season provides city staff with insights into potential water savings during drought years.
I don’t irrigate at all, am in the lowest use category and pay $14/month. But after storm and floodwater charges and fees, my bill is $99.
When is Boulder going to catch up with the times and start restricting yard watering? It’s revolting when you pass a bank or other corporate property, and they’ve got emerald green invasive grass in the middle of a drought because they water an hour every day.
Nobody even uses that grass. It’s just there because they want to look like the east coast.
CU Boulder, I’m looking at you too. I see all the sidewalks and parking lots you water, in addition to random patches of grass.
All cities in the West, including Boulder, should require that all golf courses put in artificial turf or replace the bluegrass with buffalo and native grasses. The water use on golf courses is enormous.