Fort Collins City Council Adopts the 2025 Water Efficiency Plan
Fort Collins City Council adopted the 2025 Water Efficiency Plan in September 2025, aiming to reduce water demand, minimize water shortages, and keep landscapes healthy. The plan reflects community input, best practices, and our commitment to prepare for a hotter and more variable climate.
Upon adoption, we submitted the plan to the Colorado Water Conservation Board and are awaiting its final approval, as required by the state of Colorado.
Water Efficiency Plan#
The 2025 Water Efficiency Plan (WEP) outlines our approach to manage water use and efficiency amid growing supply and demand pressures. By improving how water is used across residential, commercial, and municipal sectors, the WEP helps support long-term water resilience for our system and customers.
The WEP sets two goals intended to lower water use, minimize the frequency and magnitude of
future water shortages, build long-term landscape resilience, and encourage the City to continue
leading by example. These goals reflect community feedback, staff input, and a commitment to
act now to prepare for a hotter and more variable climate. You can dive deeper into the goals below.
The 2025 WEP is an update to the 2015 WEP approved by the Colorado Water Conservation Board in 2015.
Overall Goals#
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This goal applies to all customer sectors, including homes, businesses, and City of Fort Collins operations, and aims to reduce the risk of water shortages. It incorporates these targets:
- By 2040, lower overall annual treated water use by 320 million gallons (MG), or 980 acre-feet (AF), below projected water use
- Double the volume of savings from efficiency strategies by 2040, relative to 2020-2024 average performance
- Lower treated water use at City properties by a total cumulative volume of 5 MG (15 AF) by 2040
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The City will complete at least 7 new projects on City landscapes by 2040. These projects aim to improve drought resilience, reduce raw or treated water use, and reinforce the City’s role as a leader in water efficiency.
Did You Know?
Customers experience some of the best reliability in the country with the average household being without power for less than 20 minutes per year – that means service is available 99.99% of the time!
Opening windows on summer evenings brings in cool outdoor air.
There are 13 stormwater basins within the City of Fort Collins Growth Management Area, each with their own master plan.