The summer rains of 2024 and 2025 delivered an immediate, dramatic drop in municipal water usage in Eden Prairie, pushing June-through-August demand to levels not seen since 1995.

This short-term dip, however, is merely a ripple in a much more significant long-term current: Overall water consumption in the city is quietly but steadily heading down.

According to city officials, this long-term trend reflects a deeper shift toward water conservation, driven by more efficient appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers, the adoption of smart irrigation controllers, and plumbing code requirements for low-flow fixtures.

Last year, residential water use in Eden Prairie averaged 67 gallons per person, nearly half of the 122-gallon-per-capita water consumption average for 2007.

Eden Prairie’s annual water production has been on a downward trend since its 2007 peak, and it’s not all about wet weather. Robert Ellis, the city’s public works director, said changing attitudes toward water use are a likely factor, along with advances in water-using technology.

He said the trend is expected to continue, but industry experts predict there won’t be the big efficiency gains in appliances seen over the past 10 to 15 years. Instead, the focus has turned to innovations in landscaping and lawn irrigation, including smart irrigation controllers, water reuse systems, alternative landscape design and native, drought-tolerant, pollinator-friendly plantings.

“We know there are more significant conservation gains that can be made in these areas,” noted Ellis.

A continued downward trend in water demand would be good news for the city as it works to meet goals in its Climate Action Plan, which focuses mostly on carbon emissions. Lower water use also presents a challenge, however, in that charges based on the amount of water consumed are what pay for the city’s water production system – including large fixed costs such as the city treatment plant, reservoirs, wells and pipes.

Ellis noted that much of the city’s water system is 30 to 50 years old.

“Because of that, we are seeing more capital projects to replace aging mechanical systems in our water treatment plant,” he said in an email. “These projects have been planned and budgeted in our 10-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), and we are not seeing any pressure to defer or delay those projects based on the performance of our water enterprise.”

However, the city has a planned 3% rate increase in 2026 to offset inflationary costs for ongoing operations such as labor, electricity, chemicals, construction, pumps and other materials.

“We do not expect to see water increases beyond those needed to adjust for annual inflation anytime in the near future,” the public works director said.

Programs boost conservation

The city and its Sustainability Commission are urging water conservation through programs such as irrigation rebates and the Mayor’s Water Conservation Challenge. They also offer a stormwater reuse rebate to encourage larger developments to use rainwater instead of treated water for irrigation.

Another conservation tool is the EyeOnWater app, which tracks a home’s water use and also detects water leaks.

“We try to encourage residents to sign up for the app because it is a good tool for tracking water use and locating any issues in your plumbing that waste water and money. Something we can all agree is beneficial,” Ellis noted.

The trending drop in municipal water use has come even as Eden Prairie’s population has increased. According to Ellis, in the peak production year of 2007 the city treated 3.55 billion gallons of water, when the population was 62,090. In 2024, water production was 2.31 billion gallons and the population was 64,600.

The trend has benefited from two wet summers in a row, reducing the need for lawn irrigation. Last year, June through August, the city produced 792 million gallons of water, the lowest summer-months total since 1994. This past summer the total was a bit higher, 869 million gallons. Rain was a big factor.

According to the city, January-through-August precipitation was 31.3 inches in 2024 and 28.5 inches in 2025 – both roughly 50% higher than the totals for the same period in 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Irrigation is the big driver of summer increases in water use, so the city and others are naturally targeting innovation in that area. One piece of their advice is to use the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) WaterSense-labeled products and practices in lawn irrigation to promote water efficiency.

Jennifer Fierce, the city’s sustainability coordinator, points out that the EPA estimates an annual household savings of 7,600 gallons by using a WaterSense-labeled irrigation controller. For households that need little to no irrigation due to native or drought-tolerant landscaping, the savings are even higher.

All these numbers help demonstrate that the narrative about Eden Prairie water use is a complex one. And it’s driven not just by weather but also by innovative technology, changing attitudes about conservation and more.

Editor’s note: This story is the latest in an ongoing series called “Sustainability in Action.” The series spotlights sustainability efforts in Eden Prairie at various levels, from local government and businesses to community groups and residents. It includes a page dedicated to local, state, and national sustainability resources. This series has received support from a grant from the Eden Prairie Community Foundation.

If you have an idea for this series, contact the editors.