Water conservation is a hot topic throughout the country, and savvy homeowners and business owners are doing their homework and seeking out contractors who are educated and properly certified.

Where to begin
Although numerous manufacturers offer various irrigation courses, seminars, and certifications, the Irrigation Association (IA) is an international, nonprofit organization based in Falls Church, Virginia, representing professionals who channel their expertise toward a common goal – improving water resource knowledge and efficient irrigation practices to shape the industry. The IA can be an invaluable resource for landscapers breaking into irrigation services or just keeping current on practices and products. In addition to providing access to research information to educate members, the IA provides leadership in legislative and regulatory areas, public awareness programs, industry standards, and professional certification. Landscape and irrigation contractors can pass along water-wise habits essential to extending the users’ community water supplies, maintaining a healthy landscape, and reducing their client’s water bill.

Putting education to work
Brian Lemmermann, owner of Sommerset Landscape Maintenance in Chandler, Arizona, began by earning his state irrigation installation contractor’s license, which he says is a good baseline to ensure a company is legitimate. He is also an IA CLIA, meaning he is trained as an auditor to check systems to ensure they are running efficiently. Lemmermann takes advantage of irrigation education offered by various area organizations. He earned his “certified desert landscaper” designation at the Desert Botanical Gardens in nearby Phoenix. “It’s one day per week for six hours a day for a whole year. And classes are on Saturdays, so it’s a tough certification to come by,” he says.

“The cities here are very good about water conservation,” Lemmermann says. “We work with a lot of them and they’re all learning from each other,” he says. He notes the group Arizona Municipal Water User’s Association (AMWUA), a collaborative effort by 10 cities to promote intelligent water management. Lemmermann and several crew members attended a one-day-per-week, six-week course to earn their AMWUA certification.

Teaching from experience
Robert Pfeil, manager of training services for Rainbird Services Corporation, says most people have a tendency to overwater. “A lot of what we do deals with water conservation,” he says. “It used to be just about how it impacted the environment, but with the cost of water rising in many cities there’s also a very strong economic reason why this topic is so exciting to landscapers, irrigators, and property owners. We show them how they can do things more effectively.”

Pfeil says a number of public agencies have calculated the conservation measures they employed after attending Rainbird classes paid for the cost of the classes in less than a year. The current cost is $285 per day and classes lasts one or two days.

New technology
To promote proper water management practices, The Toro Company instituted a WaterSmart program. In addition to holding symposiums to educate professionals on topics such as residential gray water systems, drip irrigation, micro-irrigation, and the EPA WaterSense Program, Toro has introduced a line of WaterSmart Solution products. Products include an X-Flow device designed to automatically shut off flow to damaged heads, Trujectory nozzles designed to prevent overspray onto hardscape surfaces, and weather stations that account for site-specific factors such as precipitation, humidity, temperature, and wind speed.

Irrigation Association Certifications
The IA Certification Board has established certification programs to achieve national recognition of irrigation professionals.