Every Drop Counts

Water conservation is a smart and sensible way to reduce energy costs

by Diana Mirel

The following is an excerpt from the Jul/Aug 2008 issue (Volume 73, Number 4) of JPM^®, Journal of Property Management.

While energy efficiency has long been the star of the green building movement, another green initiative has recently been getting a lot of attention: water efficiency and conservation. Today, building owners and property managers across the country are focusing on water efficiency to achieve cost savings and demonstrate a commitment to green policies. Although water and sewer costs can be one of the lowest bills for property managers and building owners in certain parts of the United States, there is a bigger picture to consider.

“Water, to some degree, is like oil - it’s only getting more expensive,” said David Beckman, the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) director of the water quality programs in Los Angeles. “That is important from a business perspective. If you purchase or renovate a building, you’re looking on the horizon of 10-50 years. So what you do today to decrease your water needs will pay off now, and it will pay off in the future to a greater degree.”

Growing Commitment

Many factors have made water efficiency a top priority in modern building design and renovation.

“There is huge momentum right now for building green,” said Beckman. “The trajectory is to have [water efficiency] become a much more common feature of buildings.”

The federal government has recently has made a commitment to water efficiency with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) WaterSense labeling program. Similar to the EPA’s Energy Star program, which introduced specifications and performance tests for energy-efficient electronics and appliances, the WaterSense program is designed to drive more water-efficient plumbing fixtures, systems and technologies.

“Hopefully by 2010, every plumbing product will have a WaterSense label and specification,” said Gunnar Baldwin, water-efficiency specialist for TOTO USA, Inc.

State and local governments also are stepping up water-efficiency efforts. For instance, California recently passed a law mandating that by 2014 only high-efficiency toilets and urinals will be available for sale and installation; Georgia has similar legislation in the works. Many industry insiders are predicting that such legislation will become a national trend in the next 10 years, if not sooner.

At the same time, the plumbing industry has recognized that water efficiency is an emerging market. In the past five years, the market has been inundated with water-efficient equipment, systems and fixtures. On average, these new water-efficient fixtures and systems pay for themselves within three years and the savings will continue from there, according to Baldwin.

Lastly, with green building initiatives and environmental conservation dominating today’s social and political climate, water efficiency is gaining momentum. The public’s increasing knowledge of and commitment to environmental issues has resulted in tenants demanding more efficient and sustainable products.

“Increasingly, green features of a building are a sales point for leasees or purchasers,” said Beckman. “This increases the per square foot charge that an owner of a building can ask when they lease it. It is not just about doing the right thing for environmental protection and making the building cheaper to operate over the long haul; you may also be able to lease it for more money because you are offering a green building.”

Getting Started

With its constantly rising profile, water efficiency and conservation is hard to ignore. But where can you begin with your properties?

It all starts with a water audit of the building. For the audit, an engineer, contractor or experienced plumber will take a detailed look at every water-using device in the building, including (but not limited to) plumbing fixtures, ice makers, cooling towers, rainwater collection and irrigation systems. Each system is then itemized and analyzed to establish a detailed synopsis of what areas require the most attention.

While an experienced onsite engineer or plumber can conduct the audit, another option is hiring a performance contractor. The performance contractor will audit the bill and the building to determine possibilities for water efficiency.

“If you have a $10,000 budget for water and sewer, then you sign [can] a contract with a performance contractor who would come in and do an audit,” explained Baldwin. “The contractor gets paid based on the savings, so he is motivated to put in products that work well to accomplish his goal and pay him back.”

After the audit, the contractor will determine the problem areas and either recommend or make necessary changes, like implementing efficient faucets, urinals and cooling towers.

Building owners and property managers can also contact the local water utility. Similar to energy providers, water utilities now often provide free or low-cost customer audits, rebates and incentives.

The full article is available in the Jul/Aug 2008 JPM® issue.

IREM Members have free access to the JPM^® online archives and the “Online Exclusives,” articles that are only available on the IREM Web site. Non-members can subscribe to JPM^® at www.irem.org/jpm.