By Brett Rosenberg
January 12, 2009

In the latest installment of the story of the McKinney (TX) water supply crisis, Mayor Bill Whitfield and Dr. Milt Engelke, Associate Directory of the Texas AgriLife Research, Urban Solutions Center, spoke during the 2008 Mayors Water Council Summit of water conservation for the sake of the region’s future economic viability. Whitfield, perhaps the nation’s foremost advocate for water conservation, cited several startling facts:

• Population in Texas is expected to more than double between the years 2000 and 2060, growing from about 21 million to 46 million

• The demand for water in Texas is expected to increase by 27 percent from 17 million acre-feet of water in 2000 to 21.6 million acre-feet in 2060

• Existing water supplies and the amount of water that can be produced are projected to decrease by 18 percent from 17.9 million acre-feet in 2010 to 14.6 million acre-feet in 2060

• Texas will need an additional 8.8 million acre-feet of water by 2060

In an effort to reduce local per capita water use by 30 percent, to 140 – 160 gallons per day (the average Dallas Metroplex usage is 240 gpd), McKinney has already implemented numerous programs to educate city employees, teachers and water utility customers about the necessity of water conservation and efficiency. The city issues regular public service announcements and other outreach strategies, and has restrictions on lawn watering and premium fees for high water use. In spite of the positive impact of these efforts, the community still faces the likely prospect of doubling its current 155,000'strong population over the next ten years.

Engelke, a plant geneticist, put conservation into perspective: “As community leaders, each of you have or will very soon be dealing with the impact not of fuel, or electricity or restrictions on transportation, all important economic and sociological issues for your communities, but you will be dealing with severe limitations of our most precious natural resources – and that is clean, potable water.”

Despite many gains in per capita water conservation efforts, the population continues to grow and water supplies diminish. Meanwhile, this mid'size community is looking at certain economic stagnation if additional steps to water consumption are not implemented.

Through Whitfield’s passion and leadership, and a partnership between McKinney and the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Urban Solutions Center, a division of the Texas A&M University System, the community has embarked on a six-year plan to educate and bring research-based innovations to McKinney residents.

Considering that 50 percent of all the water used in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, including McKinney, is used on outdoor landscapes – yards, ball fields, golf courses, etc., Engelke said that by introducing a new drought-tolerant turf grass in these areas, the region could cut water consumption by half. Currently, McKinney has test areas throughout the city, and soon, this grass will be a city mainstay, eliminating the need for at least one reservoir and saving hundreds of millions of dollars.

Working with McKinney, the AgriLife Urban Solutions Center has introduced resource efficient plants into the community for future use in its landscaping ordinances. Scientifically based information on pest management, fertility, water use and water quality issues will also play a vital role in defining resource efficient plants for the future.

Among the many benefits of having stretches of drought resistant turf grass, along with less impermeable pavement, is the fact that the heat island effect is remediated by the cooling capacity of living vegetation. A lawn can provide the services of a nine-ton air conditioner and serves as a tremendous mechanism for carbon sequestration, reducing the carbon dioxide load in the environment. Engleke said, “Take a deep breath the next time you step out of your house onto your lawn as there is sufficient oxygen to support you, your family and all your best friends at no additional cost.” Furthermore, the turf grass that the Urban Solutions Center developed for the region also provides erosion control, enhanced infiltration and increased soil storage capacity, and an excellent natural cleansing of the environment. “It isn’t just about grass; it’s about the environment,” Engelke said.

During The Mayors Water Summit, Whitfield and Engelke provide samples of one of the newly developed plants: Palisades Zoysiagrass. It is vegetatively propagated, which means that you can’t buy seed, but you can buy plugs, sod and sprigs. It is commercially available throughout the southern states. In the McKinney program, there are multiple plantings using both sod and plugs to demonstrate the strength of this grass. It has a ferocious root system that is able to mine moisture and nutrient resources from deep within the soil profile, has a very modest supplemental irrigation demand, and when planted as plugs into existing lawns will soon dominate the site.