From left, Jewel Snavely, Rebecca Dorsey, Dane Johnson, Matthew O'Carroll, Briana Seapy, and Katie Cole, the Bren students behind the campus Water Action Plan. Credit: Mo Lovegreen
Until now, a master plan to reduce water consumption and waste had been a parched area on University of California campuses. But six graduate students from Bren School of Environmental Science and Management are making a splash with their recently approved Water Action Plan that is the first of its kind in the UC system and one of the most detailed plans for a university in the nation.
Two of the Bren students, Matthew O’Carroll and Katie Cole, proposed the project a year ago in an effort to address a mandate by the UC Office of the President that all 10 UC campuses create water conservation plans by 2014. They were joined in the master’s project shortly thereafter by fellow Bren students Rebecca Dorsey, Dane Johnson, Briana Seapy, and Jewel Snavely.
The team's "water tour" took the grad students inside UCSB's central water pumping station, one of its cooling towers, and its wastewater collection facility. Credit: Dane JohnsonThe Water Action Plan Team members first plunged into the project last summer when they went on a “water tour” throughout campus and collected data from numerous sites, including UCSB's central water pumping station, one of its cooling towers, and its wastewater collection facility.
Based on their findings, and taking into account estimated water rate increases and campus growth, the team made projections through 2028. The final document offers recommendations for immediate and future water savings; and includes outreach and education components.
"This is a living document," Katie said in an Office of Public Affairs and Communications press release. "We want it to be something the campus continues to come back to, and update, as technology advances and circumstances change. We see it as a roadmap. Some things here may not be feasible now, but we've laid out the conditions for which they would be feasible. We don't want this to collect dust. We want it to stay relevant."
“The Bren students have done a fantastic job developing this plan, which will serve as a template for other UC campuses to develop Water Action Plans of their own," Ron Cortez, associate vice chancellor for administrative services and co-chair of the Chancellor's Sustainability Committee, said in the press release. "This speaks to the progressive nature of UCSB, not only in its ability to surpass California's 20 percent water-use reduction mandate nine years in advance, but also in our ability to assist others as they strategize for future reductions, conservation, and education of their campus communities. UCSB has shown great leadership with this plan, and we are excited about the finished product."
For more information about the Bren grad students’ Water Action Plan, read the Office of Public Affairs and Communications press release.