The City of Greeley uses a triple-bottom-line approach to guide the implementation of their water efficiency program: prosperity, water conservation management, and community. Every year, the City of Greeley undergoes a comprehensive review of their water efficiency program to assess program performance and to adjust course for the upcoming year.

To guide this evaluation process, Greeley developed a scorecard with performance indicators for each triple-bottom-line category. Each water efficiency program component is grouped into one or more triple-bottom-line categories. Greeley staff then undergo a two-day review process to score each program component using the relevant performance indicators. Water savings are estimated for all triple-bottom-line categories to further quantify performance.

In addition to this assessment, Greely participated in WaterNow Alliance’s Project Accelerator program in 2020. Through the Project Accelerator program, WaterNow Alliance and Western Resource Advocates worked with Greeley to evaluate the city’s water efficiency program portfolio. This assessment included research, interviews with city staff and officials, quantitative analyses, and a customer survey. A GIS study identified geographic and demographic gaps where Greeley’s program was underserving key community segments. In response to this assessment, Greeley hired a bilingual staff member to lead engagement with underserved communities. Greeley is engaging underserved residents through a community workshop and a survey to determine how to best reach these communities through targeted messaging and outreach. Program(s) that foster sustainability within the underserved communities, such as tree plantings and waterwise gardens that promote temperature cooling, are a focal point for future program(s) (Egenhoff, 2024).