WIMBERLEY – Blue Hole Primary School in Wimberley has just been open since August, and the honors have already begun to roll in. The architecture firm of O’Connell Robertson and engineering firm MEP say it has won the 2020 Rain Catcher Award from the Texas Water Development Board and the school, the first One Water School in Texas, has already inspired more One Water initiatives within the region.
The One Water concept that stresses the importance of water and its continued flow through the Texas Hill Country is reflected throughout the 90,000-square foot Pre-K through second grade campus. Moreover, it serves as a model for future schools in the area as the region adapts to water challenges and develops innovative ways to benefit the community and the envionment in which it exists.
“We are thrilled that the Blue Hole Primary School integrated with the One Water System has been honored with the Rain Catcher Award, reinforcing our design’s enrichment of lives and deepening of students’ education in Wimberley ISD. This focus and display of sustainability will impact generations to come, said Jarrod Sterzinger of the architects, O'Connell Robertson.
The One Water’s approach for Blue Hole Primary was to reduce groundwater usage and reuse water produced by the school. To do this, the district installed a 200,000-gallon rainwater and AC condensate storage tank. They implemented an advanced system to reuse the captured water for irrigation and toilet flushing. Efficient use of the system enables the management of all water – drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, and grey water – as a single resource.
