BrightView’s Water Conservation Efforts Recognized in Gilbert, Ariz.

Droughts have been a concern in the southwest for years, leading many local and state governments to enact laws or implore a reduction in water usage for residential and commercial properties.

Though the Colorado River conditions are improving, it still remains at a critical level, and experts say a significant action is required to help its long-term stabilization. In Gilbert, Ariz., the city is supporting efforts to use water wisely.

At The Islands, the community association has been concerned about the ongoing drought and water usage within the neighborhood. BrightView was brought in to form an action plan, and changes were immediately implemented.

“When we took this site over, the Gilbert irrigation team took the time to do a complete system assessment and identified opportunities to improve and save water,” said James Carr, BrightView’s Southwest Regional Irrigation Manager.

This included improving more than 100 Poly Drip valves to PVC lines, upgrading nearly 50 conventional controllers to smart ones, and then utilizing WeatherMatic to save from wasting water. The overhaul took roughly a year to complete.

In 2021, a new homeowners association board was elected, coinciding with the drought hitting the area hard. Meetings with BrightView were held weekly to discuss options.

“2022 brought about a lot of fear of forced turf conversion or water restrictions, and the community wanted to get in front of it all and make sure everyone was acting socially responsible,” Carr said. “The plan involved regular checks on the controllers and running them in smart mode, monthly monitoring the water bill usage, consistently repairing leaks as quickly as possible, reducing the water on the turf, and more.”

The city, conscious of water management, created the Water Wise Gilbert program, which provides a site-specific water budget to a local organization, based on the lot size and landscaping. Once the organization participant is within 120 percent of their annual landscape water budget, they are labeled as Water Wise Gilbert.
Recently, The Islands and BrightView were recognized as being a Water Wise Gilbert site and received yard signs to display and a proclamation from the city.

“I’m proud of our team’s hard work,” Carr said. “BrightView has been committed to conserving water through smart controllers and water management landscaping, so seeing our work recognized like this is a testament to what we are doing to help the communities where we work, live, and play.”