Denver Water Sees Large-Scale Reduction In Consumption

DENVER (CBS4) - Recent heavy rain have caused dangerous conditions along fast-flowing rivers and streams on Colorado's Front Range, but it's also giving the water supplies of most communities a boost.

Denver Water, the largest water utility in the state, says consumption so far this year is down about 20 percent compared to an average year. That equates to about 4.8 billion gallons of water that has not been consumed this year.

Even the average daily consumption in Denver has not hit an average level compared to the past five years.

Denver Water says they only expect revenue to be down about 3 percent, but what they are really hoping will happen is residents of the city will continue to conserve water this summer.

"July and August, we know it's going to be hot. It's going to warm up, it's going to be dry," Denver Water spokesman Travis Thompson said. "Just because we had a few good months of rain doesn't mean that conservation isn't important. We need to always use smart water practices here in the state of Colorado."

"We've got to take advantage of these good times and also recognize that dry times are ahead of us and we never know how long they'll last," he said.

Denver Water says about 50 percent of their supply comes from the west side of the Continental Divide, and with larger dam releases at those storage areas, that means more water is headed down the Colorado River. That's good news for parched areas like southern California that rely on Colorado River water.

Customers of Denver Water make up about a quarter of the state's population.

Many customers told the utility they haven't turned on their sprinkler systems at their homes or offices yet.