Water Smart is not just for homeowners. Businesses throughout the Las Vegas Valley are cashing in on money- and water-saving incentives offered by the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA).
Time is money. Grass is $1 per square foot.
The SNWA’s Water Smart Landscape program rebates $1 for every square foot of thirsty grass that businesses convert to attractive, low-maintenance and water-efficient landscape. Additionally, businesses that upgraded last year saved an average of 825,000 gallons of water and more than $2,000 on their annual water bills.
Cost is often the factor weighed most by many businesses contemplating a landscape conversion. The average landscape conversion costs will include: project design fees; permit costs; costs to remove existing landscaping not part of the new design; and costs to install the project, including plants, irrigation, hardscapes and other elements.
In the long run, businesses can save money with:
- Lower water bills due to less water usage
- Reduced or eliminated repair costs for water damage caused by sprinklers
- Lower landscape-maintenance fees
- Lowered replacement cost for aging or damaged turf and sprinkler parts
- Less chance of water waste, resulting in increased opportunities for risk management and reduction in liability.
Since 1999, nearly 2,400 Southern Nevada businesses – including golf courses, shopping centers, casinos and homeowners associations – have participated in the Water Smart Landscaping program, converting more than 46 million square feet of turf. Christine Thomas, regional property manager for Weingarten Realty Investors and a Water Smart Landscaping participant, said, “We’ve realized savings in water and maintenance costs that we have passed along to our tenants at Best of the West Shopping Center. The program itself is easy, and we’ve appreciated the service provided by the SNWA, from the initial measurements through to receiving the final rebate check.”
Businesses: Get WET
Saving water in Southern Nevada isn’t just about converting turf. It’s about managing your water use with state-of-the-art technology. The SNWA’s Water Efficient Technologies – WET – offers incentives to replace older systems with new, water-efficient capital improvements that result in dependable, consistent water savings of at least 500,000 gallons of water, reducing water bills by more than $1,000 a year.
The WET program is flexible. The program allows business owners to define which technology will save them the most and make the greatest sense for their organization. Businesses can receive incentives from the SNWA by implementing water-saving technologies such as toilet and showerhead retrofits, replacing sport-field turf to an artificial sporting surface or retrofitting standard cooling towers. Businesses also have the option to work with the SNWA to implement custom technology, then qualify for a performance-based monetary incentive. With the customized program option, businesses can earn up to:
- $10 for every 1,000 gallons conserved in a year on consumptive-use technologies
- $2.50 for every 1,000 gallons conserved in a year on nonconsumptive-use technologies.
Incorporating water-efficient technologies is a bottom-line business decision. Steve Stith, president of Nevada Linen Supply, said, “The WET program allows us to serve our customers in the restaurant and hotel industry in the most efficient manner possible. We now save nearly 60 percent on our annual water usage, and the SNWA provided us with a significant financial incentive.”
These money-saving programs are available to multi-family and business property owners who are serviced by the City of North Las Vegas, the City of Henderson, Big Bend Water District, the City of Boulder City and the Las Vegas Valley Water District.
For further information, go to SNWA.com or call 702-258-SAVE.