Sand and gravel operations that use, or intend to use, more than 100 acre-feet of water per year must construct disposal ponds or install clarifiers to collect and reuse runoff and drainage water. The cattle industry uses water for livestock drinking water, dust control, feed mixing, fire protection, and other purposes. The greatest opportunity for water conservation is dust control. Conservation requirements for feedlots are based on water use per head of cattle. Dairies use water for cooling, cleaning, livestock drinking water and other purposes.
Milk cows require more water for drinking than replacement animals.
Also, the number of times per day that the cows are milked contributes to water use. Conservation requirements for dairies are based on water use per cow depending on whether the cow is lactating or not. Conservation potential at a dairy can be determined by the degree to which water is reused or recycled. The First and Second Management Plans require all other industrial users to recycle water to the maximum extent feasible. The plans also require minimizing waste and prohibit the use of water for single-pass heating and cooling systems.