Poway has won the National Mayor’s Challenge to Conserve Water! In all, 3,900 cities across the nation competed for the top spot in five different population categories. Poway had the highest percentage of residents take a water saving pledge in its population category (30,000-99,000). During the month of April, Poway residents pledged to save nearly 71 million gallons of water – enough to fill 108 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Despite being Poway’s first year participating in the competition, Poway Mayor Steve Vaus chose to directly challenge the City of Encinitas to a head-on competition. At the time Vaus stated that “Poway is #1 in so many ways, beating Encinitas will be just another feather in our cap.” When notified of the City’s win, Vaus said “I’m not the least bit surprised. Poway is accustomed to being number one in so many ways. This just goes to show how well Poway residents step up to the plate when there’s a challenge.”
Residents from the winning cities will be entered into a drawing this month for over $50,000 in prizes including home improvement gift cards, home irrigation equipment, and the Grand Prize; a Toyota Prius v. In addition, one of the five winning cities will receive a water efficient landscape makeover for a park or school or a WaterSmart Software tool to help water customers conserve water.
The 4th National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation was presented by the Wyland Foundation and Toyota, with support from the U.S. EPA’s Office of Water, National League of Cities, U.S. Forest Service, the Toro Company, Wondergrove Kids, Bytelaunch, and WaterSmart Software.