Two-minute impact

Public Works Director Sharon Valiante came before City Council at a May 14 special meeting to determine if council was interested in continuing to participate in the North Fort Bend Water Authority’s Water Provider Conservation Program, which allows the city to receive a $0.10 pumping rebate per 1,000 gallons of water used.

“In the past we have gotten anywhere from $50,000 a year to $75,000 a year in rebates,” Valiante said. “This year, we expected to get more; however, the North Fort Bend Water Authority actually changed the core incentives for us, and we did not meet one of the incentives, which is the leadership conservation committee.”

To participate in the 2024 Water Provider Conservation Program, cities must now create a Leadership Water Conservation Committee, which must consist of three council members and a community liaison who will meet at least once per month to discuss the community’s water conservation efforts. The three volunteers from council included:

• Jason Knape
• Abhijeet Utturkar
• Patrick Powers

Knape said he would reach out to a resident in Del Webb, with a particular interest in water, who the council will ask to serve on the committee alongside the elected officials.

Zooming in

In addition to the committee, program participants are also required to choose a number of water conservation efforts to focus on as a community, including sending high water user notifications and distributing conservation information at least four times per year, according to the 2024 Water Provider Conservation Program Guide.

Cities must pick at least three of the following programs to participate in:

• Residential rebate: have at least 0.5% of residents participate in the North Fort Bend County Water Authority resident rebate program
• Smart meter portal
• Residential irrigation system evaluations
• Community collaboration
• Evapotranspiration weather station
• Integrated water management plan

In addition to choosing at least three of the water programs, the city must also choose one ongoing project from:

• Homeowners association water budgets
• Smart meter installation
• Advanced irrigation scheduling

City officials are upgrading Fulshear’s water meters, which was approved Feb. 20 and is expected to wrap up in December 2025, Valiante said.

Another requirement for the program is to have at least one member of the Fulshear committee to attend at least one North Fort Bend Water Authority water conservation meeting during the year, Valiante said.

The backstory

The authority’s program, formerly known as the Latty’s Toolbox Water Conservation Program, began in 2016 to promote and educate residents on water conservation, according to the 2024 guide.

The voluntary program aims to:

• Increase board of director/City Council member involvement
• Increase water saving potential
• Increase community awareness

Upon successful completion, participants receive the incentivized rate of $0.10 per 1,000 gallons of water the following year, according to the 2024 guide.

Also on the agenda

The city of Fulshear also canvassed the May 4 election results and swore in elected City Council officials, including:

• District 2: Patrick Powers, replaces Debra Cates who reached her three term limit
• District 3: Christina Baron, who ran unopposed and has served in the role since September
• At-Large: Jason Knape, who retains his position after beating challenger Kim Stacy

Council also called for a June 15 runoff election for the Fulshear mayor position between Joel Patterson and Don McCoy, since neither of the candidates received more than 50.1% of the votes in the May 4 election.

Looking ahead

A resolution creating the committee and naming the members will be brought back to City Council at its May 21 meeting to adopt before the May 31 program intent deadline, Valiante said.