Section 3730.307  Conservation Practices and Other Permit Conditions

a)         The Department shall condition allocations within a user category upon required conservation practices for each user category as specified in subsections (b) and (c).  Failure by any permittee to meet the conservation requirements applicable to it within a reasonable period of time will, upon notice, hearing and determination of the failure, constitutes a violation of a Department order.

b)         Permittees in Categories IA and IB shall limit non-revenue water so that it is less than 12% of net annual pumpage (system input volume) in Water Year 2015, decreasing to no more than 10% by Water Year 2019 and all years thereafter.  Permittees whose non-revenue water exceeds the non-revenue thresholds (12% in Water Year 2015, decreasing to 10% by Water Year 2019) shall submit a water system improvement plan that outlines the actions the permittee plans to undertake, along with a timeframe, to reduce non-revenue water to less than the thresholds outlined in this subsection.  The Department may grant a waiver to the requirements to submit a water system improvement plan to a permittee whose non-revenue water exceeds the thresholds if it can be shown that the reason for exceeding the non-revenue water threshold is due to metered, but unbilled, consumption or to authorized, unmetered, unbilled consumption when the quantity can be determined through acceptable engineering practices.  The Department recognizes that actions necessary to reduce water losses can require significant capital expenditures and a lengthy timeframe, and that communities face other pressing infrastructure needs, and will take this into account in reviewing and approving water system improvement plans.

c)         The Department shall require evidence of adoptions by the permittee of the following conservation practices as applicable to the particular user:

1)         Leakage monitoring and correction for storage, transmission and distribution systems.

2)         Metering of all new construction.  When practicable and feasible, the Department recommends sub-metering in new multi-family buildings.

3)         Metering of existing non-metered services as part of any major remodeling.

4)         The adoption of ordinances requiring that new and replacement plumbing fixtures be a labeled WaterSense product, as specified by USEPA.

5)         The adoption of ordinances requiring the installation of closed system air conditioning in all new construction and in all remodeling.

6)         The adoption of ordinances requiring that all lavatories for public use in new construction or remodeling be equipped with metering or self-closing faucets.

7)         The adoption of ordinances requiring that all newly constructed or remodeled car wash installations be equipped with a water recycling system.

8)         The adoption of ordinances that restrict non-essential outside water uses to prevent excessive, wasteful use.  These shall provide that unrestricted lawn sprinkling will not be allowed from May 15 through September 15 of each year by requiring, as a minimum, that lawn sprinkling shall not occur on consecutive days nor shall any lawn sprinkling occur during at least a 6 hour period in the middle of the day (i.e., 10 a.m. through 4 p.m., noon to 6 p.m.) when evapotranspiration is at its highest.  New lawns (less than 3 months old) may be exempted from this provision.  In addition, new/replacement sprinkler systems shall be equipped with a WaterSense labeled irrigation controller and shall be in compliance with Section 2.5(g) of the Illinois Plumbing License Law [225 ILCS 320].

9)         Development and implementation of public programs to encourage efficient water use.

10)         Installation of facilities and implementation of programs to reduce to a reasonable minimum, and to accurately account for, water used for navigational and discretionary diversion purposes.

d)         Within 90 days after receipt of an allocation permit, each permittee that uses any water from deep aquifer pumpage shall submit and implement a phased program designed to end this practice, other than for emergency or standby use, within five years after the receipt of Lake Michigan water.  New applicants may petition the Department for a waiver of this requirement, which the Department may grant if it determines that the applicant has a legitimate legal or practical basis for its inability to comply with this requirement and when a partial allocation of Lake Michigan water will result in reduced pumpage from the deep aquifer.  Existing permittees are not eligible to petition the Department for a waiver of this requirement.

e)         As a condition of receiving an allocation of Lake Michigan water, all permittees will limit unmetered hydrant uses to 1% or less of net annual pumpage in each annual accounting period.  The Department may grant an exception to this requirement if it can be shown by the user that this requirement can't be met.  In determining the merits of a request for an exception, the Department considers such factors as engineering studies of hydrant uses and unusual circumstances during an annual accounting period.

f)         The Department recommends that all permittees adopt water rate structures based on metered water use and that water rate structures be developed that will discourage excessive water use.  The Department also recommends that water rates reflect the full cost of water, including the long term cost to properly maintain and operate the water supply distribution system in such a manner as to keep system losses to a minimum.

(Source:  Amended at 38 Ill. Reg. 22801, effective November 18, 2014)