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San Antonians gathered June 30 at the Marriott Rivercenter Hotel for the 2009 WaterSaver Awards Luncheon to honor those taking a leadership role to save water. The 2009 WaterSaver Award winners include businesses, non-profit organizations and local leaders,  recognized for innovative approaches in technology, education and business as part of their water conservation efforts.

"San Antonio's WaterSavers are community leaders, encouraging other organizations and businesses to adopt similar measures to conserve water in our homes, businesses and community," said Karen Guz, SAWS Water Conservation Director. "As we all work together to reduce our water use during the current drought conditions, there is no better time to recognize the people and organizations already going above and beyond to save water."

WaterSaver Awards are sponsored by SAWS, the San Antonio Business Journal, and KONO 101.1 Radio. Proceeds from the WaterSaver Awards Luncheon go toward the Water Conservation Fellowship Fund for college students pursuing a career field that assists in meeting future water needs.

Collectively, those honored through the WaterSaver Awards program over the past 13 years have reduced water consumption in San Antonio by an astonishing 1.6 billion gallons per year. We are proud to honor the following 2009 WaterSaver winners:

WaterSaver Awards

Spurs Sports and Entertainment – AT&T Center
In September 2008, Spurs Sport and Entertainment identified two projects that reduced the annual water consumption at the AT&T Center by 13 million gallons per year, including a system to use recycled water rather than potable water for the building's cooling towers as well as a project to retrofit more than 160 urinals to low-flow models.

Marriot Rivercenter Hotel
The Marriot Rivercenter Hotel completed a retrofit of more than 1,000 hotel rooms in November 2008. Under the new SAWS WaterSaver Hotel Program, the Marriott installed high-efficiency dual-flush toilets as well as low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators – saving a total of 18 million gallons of water annually.

Marriot Riverwalk Hotel
The Marriot Riverwalk Hotel completed a retrofit of more than 500 hotel rooms in December 2008 as part of the new SAWS WaterSaver Hotel Program. The hotel installed high-efficiency dual-flush toilets as well as low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators – conserving 11 million gallons of water each year.

Embassy Suites – Airport
In June 2008, the Embassy Suites – Airport completed a retrofit of more than 280 hotel rooms through the new SAWS WaterSaver Hotel Program. The hotel installed high-efficiency dual-flush toilets as well as low-flow showerheads and aerators – saving 7.5 million gallons of water annually.

Drury Southwest Inc.
Through active participation in SAWS conservation programs, Drury Southwest is setting the standard in the hospitality arena. Each of its San Antonio-based hotels have installed high-efficiency toilets, water cooled ice machines and a system to collect and use condensate rather than potable water for the building's cooling towers. As a result of these retrofits, approximately 7.5 million gallons of water are conserved each year.

Bexar County – Freeman Coliseum
The Freeman Coliseum received a remodeling in 2008, granting it the capacity to host millions of people each year. As part of the project, 127 toilets were replaced with high-efficiency models, resulting in a savings of 2.5 million gallons of water annually.

Transwestern Property Management - Toilet fixture retrofit
In 2008, the Transwestern Property Management Company retrofitted seven buildings within its property management inventory. Part of the SAWS Commercial Toilet Program, the company installed 177 low-flow toilets, aerators and showerheads, resulting in water savings of four million gallons per year.

Equastone/Endura Advisory Group
In 2008, the Equastone retrofitted two building within its inventory, including replacing 120 high-flow toilets, aerators and showerheads. The project results in a total savings of three million gallons of water annually.

USAA
USAA also took on a major retrofit project in 2008, replacing a total of 1,057 high-flow aerators with low-flow models as well as trading in almost 200 high-flow toilets. This project will reduce annual water consumption at the facility by seven million gallons per year.

WaterSaver Too Awards

Bexar County 4-H Council – Haven 4-H Club
Bexar County Haven 4-H Club emerged as a top community leader in the 2008 Season to Save Community Challenge. With their help, 740 high-efficiency toilets were distributed to qualified SAWS residential customers. When complete, these retrofits will result in water savings of 9 million gallons per year.

My Friend's House Christian Fellowship
My Friend's House Christian Fellowship also proved to be a community leader in the 2008 Season to Save Community Challenge. Through their participation, 561 high-efficiency toilets were distributed to qualified SAWS residential customers. When complete, these retrofits will result in 7 million gallons of water saved annually.

Butler Management/Sonterra Medical Management Group
Butler Management and Sonterra Medical have the distinguished honor of receiving the first rebate for retrofitting an existing Autoclave. Butler and Sonterra worked together to reduce the water consumption of this notorious water waster by approximately one million gallons per year, providing a model for others in the medical industry to follow.

Imagine Homes
As part of the WaterSaver Home Builder pilot project, Imagine Homes incorporated an array of water-saving features into 63 new homes, including dual flush toilets, high efficiency showerheads, structured hot water plumbing systems and drought tolerant landscaping. If used properly, these features can reduce annual water consumption by 40,000 gallons per home. Collectively, the homes can conserve more than 2.5 million gallons each year.

Wall Homes
Another partner in the WaterSaver Home Builder pilot project, Wall Homes incorporated water-saving features into 50 new homes, including dual flush toilets, high efficiency showerheads, structured hot water plumbing systems and drought tolerant landscaping. If used properly, these features can reduce annual water consumption by 40,000 gallons per home, and collectively, the homes can save two million gallons per year. WaterSaver Partner of the Year Awards

American Sunrise
In 2008, the SAWS initiated "Conservation Make-Over," a pilot program providing retrofits as well as minor leak repairs to pre-qualified SAWS residential customers. American Sunrise was a key partner in the success of this project, retrofitting 128 homes over five days that will save 7.5 million gallons of water per year.

CPS Energy
SAWS and CPS Energy began a new era in cooperative conservation in 2008, partnering to promote conservation of both energy and water. Sister agencies owned by the City of San Antonio, both SAWS and CPS Energy are dedicated to serving their customers and committed to sustainability and the efficient use of water and energy.

Trinity University – Engineering Department
The normal, daily operation of air conditioning equipment produces large amounts of high-quality water, condensate, that can be reused in cooling towers, landscape irrigation, or other industrial processes. Trinity University's Engineering Department and students modeled and designed a condensate collection system and are using the model to quantify the results. From their efforts, data is collected from two separate systems to better understand the volume of water produced from air conditioning equipment.

Build San Antonio Green
Build San Antonio Green™ (BSAG) is San Antonio's residential Green Building Program, promoting conservation and efficiency. BSAG provides technical workshops, certifies homes as being built green, and works to implement green building standards in the building and development community as well as encourage the creation of incentive programs. Since the beginning of the program, 256 homes have been certified, with 77 certified in 2008.

City of San Antonio – Office of Environmental Policy
The Sustainability Task Force (STF) was created in 2008 to collaborate on integrating sustainability principles within municipal operations. The Task Force established a planning, monitoring and technology transfer framework, promoted the City's sustainability goals and developed and strengthened policies and initiatives.

WaterSaver Educator Award

Debbie Traynor - Instructional Specialist - Elementary Science - Northside ISD
For the past nine years, the Northside Independent School District, and specifically instructor specialist Debbie Traynor, have supported and utilized SAWS materials in all second grade classrooms. Through their efforts, thousands of Northside school district students have been introduced to the concepts of water conservation and water pollution prevention through this curriculum, which includes the Adventures of Watershed Willie and Cactus Callie in their Watershed.

WaterSaver Leadership Award

Mayor Phil Hardberger
Former San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger receives the Leadership Award for his work on both Mission Verde as well as the Mayor's Sustainable Task Force. In early 2008, Mayor Hardberger introduced proclaimed Mission Verde, a city-wide initiative to build a 21st century economy by expanding sustainability efforts, focusing on energy and water efficiency and conservation. Resource conservation is a major part of Mission Verde, prompting the Mayor to appoint a Sustainable Buildings Task Force to develop advanced energy codes for sustainable building that incorporate energy and water conservation.