CORTE MADERA, CA, July 25, 2006 -- ET Water Systems reported that its product has been selected by the Long Beach School District Board for installation on 27 schools, as part of a program to conserve water and reduce the district's water bills. The Long Beach Water District provided grant funding, assisted in the analysis of competitive products and recommended the ET Water™ system.
Matthew Lyons, director of planning and conservation, at the Long Beach Water District, said, "We selected ET Water because it provides the water-saving features and ease of use we were looking for at a very competitive price. The web-based system automatically schedules irrigation at each school based on highly localized weather data and enables remote monitoring and adjustments from any web-connected PC, if necessary."
An important element in the Long Beach selection criteria is the highly localized source of weather data that is used to develop ET Water's daily watering schedules for each school. Through an exclusive partnership with WeatherBug®, the leading provider of live, local weather information services, ET Water offers its customers and the school district the ability to proactively monitor and manage school grounds and facilities with unprecedented efficiency and reliability.
WeatherBug operates and manages a nationwide network of 8,000 WeatherBug Tracking Stations and 1,000 WeatherBug Cameras. Nearly 75% of US citizens live within 15 miles of a WeatherBug Tracking Station, mostly located at area schools. The local WeatherBug Tracking Station provides live, site specific information making the ET Water Smart Controllers significantly more effective than if the weather data were based off nearby airport information, which can be up to an hour old.
"We are proud to partner with ET Water to help the Long Beach schools and community optimize their resources by leveraging our WeatherBug Data," said Jan Dutton, Director of WeatherBug Professional Services. "This collaborative solution between ET Water and WeatherBug benefits everyone in the Long Beach community, as the School Board will clearly experience greener pastures -- on the school grounds and at the end of the fiscal year."
In addition to the weather station installation, ET Water and WeatherBug donated the WeatherBug Achieve™ education package to the school district. The award-winning educational program combines live, real-world weather data from the WeatherBug Network with live interactive lessons that educate K-12 students. The WeatherBug Achieve lessons are used to teach science, math, geography and technology and allow students to travel the U.S. and observe weather patterns and severe weather as it is happening, no matter where they live.
Bruce Cardinal, CEO of ET Water, observes "The combination of ET Water's proprietary system and the local WeatherBug Tracking Stations, coupled with the Achieve curriculum lessons, increases the quality of life and learning for the Long Beach Community. Local taxpayers will also appreciate the Long Beach School District's decision when they realize how these joint ventures ultimately save taxpayer dollars -- through the increased efficiencies offered by our unique package and partnership."
Long Beach School District serves 92,000 youth in 95 schools and has a reputation as one of America's finest school systems, winning many awards and serving as a national model of excellence.
Long Beach Water District provides water for 470,000 people and has a very far-sighted plan for water conservation that encompasses many initiatives including promotion of water saving technologies such as smart irrigation controllers, increased use of reclaimed water and educational programs to increase awareness of conservation needs and practices.
ET Water Systems LLC (www.etwater.com). of Corte Madera, CA, makes weather-based irrigation control systems that combine the latest horticulture science, real-time weather and Web technology to optimize and automate landscape watering schedules. The company's Smart Controllers virtually eliminate all over-watering, reducing irrigation water costs by up to 50%, while promoting plant health and preventing runoff caused by excessive irrigation. ET Water systems are installed at premier corporate campuses, schools, parks, homeowners associations, college campuses and housing developments.
WeatherBug (weatherbug.com) ensures that individuals, schools, businesses and government agencies plan with confidence by providing the most precise live weather information, the most relevant weather reports, and the earliest weather warnings to safeguard property and lives. With 8,000 WeatherBug Tracking Stations and over 1,000 cameras primarily based at neighborhood schools and public safety facilities across the U.S., WeatherBug maintains the largest exclusive weather network in the world. The live, local weather conditions are delivered to millions of consumers via the Internet and mobile devices, more than 100 state and local government agencies, including the National Weather Service, and to broadcast television stations, schools, and businesses. WeatherBug's data is unique as it is the only live, neighborhood weather available anywhere. WeatherBug is a brand of AWS Convergence Technologies Inc. (www.aws.com).
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