Cheyenne Mountain Zoo reaches water-saving goal with 45% reduction in water use

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is continuing its commitment to water conservation after reaching its goal to reduce its overall annual water usage by nearly half.

From 2009 to 2017, CMZoo used an average of 29 million gallons of water per year.

To offset the environmental impact and reduce water usage, the team did the following:

1. Designing a new hippo habitat with more efficient methods of water filtration than the old aquatics building possessed.
2. Improving animals’ water quality and reducing water used in animals’ habitats by fine-tuning water testing and filtration methods.
3. Catching water that was previously drained when the hippo pools were vacuumed.
4. Installing pumps to improve water pressure and reduce water volume on hoses used to clean animal areas.
5. Reinforcing a ‘water aware’ culture throughout the Zoo, with leaks reported more often and repaired more quickly.
6. Offsetting the 16-million-gallon annual usage by funding the release of equal annual amounts into the Rio Grande basin of southern Colorado.

Now, thanks to the creative solutions throughout the CMZoo and techniques and technologies in Water's Edge, the zoo now only uses around 16 million gallons per year.

That's a 45% reduction in water use and a saving of 13 million gallons per year. According to Colorado Springs Utilities, that's enough water to serve 160 homes.

“Water conservation really is about collectively saving every single drop we can,” said Nicole Chaney, CMZoo conservation and sustainability coordinator, in a press release. “It’s wild to think that by making a minor adjustment to the hippo pool vacuum, we saved 1,883,400 gallons of water per year. I hope CMZoo guests and fans will look for opportunities in their own homes – even if they don’t have a huge river pool that houses four hippos – to look for small changes that can make big impacts.”

Officials said guests also make a contribution to water conservation efforts by supporting the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

To offset the zoo's water usage, the CMZoo is also continuing a commitment to Trout Unlimited's water conservation efforts in Colorado.

To learn more about the zoo's efforts to conserve water, click here.

To find out more information about how you could help save Colorado's waterways by being water-wise at home, click here.