“It’s a thrill to see the enthusiasm the participants have for learning about plants, irrigation, soils, hardscape and stormwater harvest. Through this program the graduates become ambassadors for water conservation in their communities.”
Since 2015, Joy has taught the WaterSmart Water Conservation Workshops to the public and coached citizens on water conservation design for their homes.
Joy has continued to deliver the water conservation message to the community through workshops that each water district holds for their citizens. Conversion practices for residential landscapes includes:
- Teaching the practices of rainwater harvesting.
- Permaculture (berms and swales combined with native plantings).
- Drought tolerant plant materials, plant hydro-zoning.
- Irrigation system design and retrofit.
- Hardscape design (permeable vs. non-permeable).
- Turf removal.
An example of the types of conversions includes the First Place winner of the San Dieguito Water District CA Friendly Landscape Award. This property homeowner removed approximately 20% of the grass on their property (the front yard) and replaced it with low water plants and an efficient irrigation system; which has resulted in a 13% savings on their water bill over the 9 months since installed. This project received both the San Diego County Water Authority and Metropolitan Water District turf conversion rebates.
The workshop objectives address the following:
- Building/revising the pilot program.
- Conducting workshops (four classes per series and geographically diverse locations).
- Delivering three hours homeowner workshop.
- Content interviews included in the on-demand videos.
- Measuring results and outcomes.
- Helping participants implement their designs.
Location
San Diego, California
Owner
San Diego County Water Authority
Prime
Studio West
Awards
- ASLA San Diego Chapter Honor Award for Communication, 2015
- EPA WaterSense Excellence Award 2018.
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