Round Rock's water saving efforts earned the city three conservation awards from the American Water Works Association, a water industry trade group.
Round Rock stood out among the many Central Texas cities that strive to conserve water and offer water conservation programs and incentives, said Mike Howe, executive director of the Texas section of the AWWA.
"In Round Rock's case our conservation committee was taken by the success of the program and their persistence in making it work," Howe said.
Round Rock was recognized for its rain barrel program, its reuse of treated wastewater for irrigation and its promotion of water conservation.
The awards could reflect a growing trend among city utilities in drought-stricken Texas.
Many water utilities are moving beyond promoting in-house water saving measures and pushing residents to lower their use of drinking water for irrigation through rainwater harvesting, xeriscaping and other methods, Howe said.
Rain barrels collect rainwater that runs off roofs or other areas and the practice of catching rainwater for reuse is called rainwater harvesting. Xeriscaping is a type of landscaping that greatly limits or eliminates the need for irrigation beyond rainfall by replacing grass with gravel and native, drought-tolerant plants.
More information on Round Rock's water conservation programs can be found here.
