In recent months, there has been much concern about the shortage of water in California due to lack of rainfall during the fall and winter months of 2013 and 2014. Governor Jerry Brown declared California is in a state of emergency on Jan. 17 in an effort raise awareness and encourage all California residents to conserve water in whatever ways possible.

BIOLA FINDS WAYS TO CONSERVE WATER

“We can’t make it rain, but we can be much better prepared for the terrible consequences that California’s drought now threatens, including dramatically less water for our farms and communities and increased fires in both urban and rural areas,” said Brown in a press release regarding the drought.

Biola has been proactive in its efforts to conserve water, even prior to the drought warning. The biggest addition to the water conservation effort of Biola is the cooling tower’s change to a “zero-bleed” soft water system, which occurred only a few years ago. Originally, Biola used chemically treated water, but this was very costly.

The system is projected to save nearly 2.9 million gallons of water every year, said Brian Phillips, the senior director of facilities management. The system is expected to last around 10 years, which will save a total of 29 million gallons of water.

In addition, a vacuum system is to be added that will filter out any buildup of sediment or dust and recycle the filtered water back into the cooling tank. This strategic move will save an estimated 56,000 gallons of water a year, said Christopher Reyes, manager of Biola’s environmental systems.

LEED BUILDING PROGRAM

“One of the first steps in making the Biola campus environmentally-friendly was to be part of the Leadership in Engineering and Environmental Design building program that was administered by the U.S. Green Building Council,” Reyes said.

The first building to be constructed on campus within LEED standards was Talbot East. Every building constructed on campus since then has fit the standards, as will all future buildings. However, older buildings will not be upgraded. The LEED program provides tax rebates to Biola, as well as saving money due to lower operating costs of buildings with LEED specifications.

“LEED buildings are constructed to have environmentally friendly functions, such as redirecting storm water to water plants and green roofs that use the water to insulate the building in a method called heat islanding,” Phillips said.

This is not the first time that California has been in a period of drought, according to the California Department of Water Resources website. The climate of the state is very prone to have very dry seasons at times, some lasting longer than others.

However, a drought is not only a threat to the state’s water supply, but also to firefighters and forest services. When it is dry, the chance of any small spark starting a wildfire is greatly increased. But there have been no memos or policy changes for this season, according to firefighters stationed at local fire station 194, located on Beach Boulevard.