Conserving Water for a Thirsty Planet

Conserving water by using low-flow fixtures and low-impact stormwater design requires system thinking and integrative design.
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Sponsored by BTL Liners, Inc., The Toro Company, TOTO USA, Xypex Chemical Corporation, and Zurn Engineered Water Solutions
Celeste Allen Novak AIA, LEED AP

DECREASE THE DEMAND

According to the American Water Works Association, average daily water use in a single family home is approximately 69.3 gallons. Americans use water through a variety of home appliances and fixtures and lose a surprisingly 13.7 percent of water from leaks.2

Sean Martin, VP of Marketing and Sales for Zurn Engineered Water Solutions, stated that when beginning a water management program, "Designers need to understand who is going to occupy a building and what their needs are in order to benchmark technologies and decide which technology fit the occupants the best." He recommends that in most commercial settings and renovations, it is best to educate the users through smaller modifications which then can become standard retrofits as users accept new equipment such as high efficiency toilets, faucets and urinals.

STORMWATER, IRRIGATION AND WASTE WATER

Highly efficient sprinklers have an effective application rate and provide uniform coverage to maintain this turf grass while minimizing water waste.

Photo courtesy of The Toro Company

 

Businesses, industry and agriculture draw from water resources both from public and private sources. Irrigation accounts for a large portion of water use by businesses, and often is billed as waste water, when it is supplied by a public facility. Wasting water is expensive and costly to the preservation of this important resource. Both at home and work, water management begins with by educating the users and setting water budget that targets water management goals, both inside and outside.

Water management also includes the control of water infiltration and storage for re-use. New geotech fabrics provide linings for pools, waste treatment and irrigation systems. Environmentally friendly crystalline chemicals are available to protect concrete foundations and increase the durability of water containment systems.

Ground conditions and water access varies by region. In some cases, water use is carefully metered and high infrastructure fees are attached to new construction and new tap-ins to water and sewage systems. The price of water runs from the pennies per gallon from a municipal water supply to over $5 per gallon when buying water by the case. Most communities capture the cost of the infrastructure required for water management development fees by charging for new attachments to the municipal water and waste supply systems. These costs have escalated in the past years as aging infrastructure demands that cities put more tax dollars into water treatment systems. In some cases, the rivers, lakes and streams have reached capacity for treatment and new technology is required to meet the development pressures.

Crystalline coatings can be applied to repair water damage on concrete water containment systems.

Photo courtesy of Xypex Chemical Corporation

 

Water that comes from a public water supply is metered. Private systems or wells which supply water appear to have an unlimited supply of this resource until the well runs dry and requires deeper drilling into new aquifer supplies. When designing a large commercial water system, designers can provide separate meters for irrigation and cooling tower water. This water does not return to the waste stream. In fact, some professionals have been able to negotiate with a municipality for reduces fees for this water as it does not return to the municipal treatement systems. Separating irrigation water from building water is one method of system design to save water.

Low-impact designers know the importance of effective water management. In many parts of the country, outdoor irrigation water use accounts for a large portion of the water budget for buildings. Today, advanced technology has produced a full line of irrigation products that can assist the designer in reducing outdoor water use by 50 percent, conserving water through lower flow, higher efficiency sprinklers and sub-surface drip irrigation systems.

There are two main factors that determine sprinkler efficiency. Whether watering turf grass or landscape, the irrigation system should deliver water at a low but effective application rate - a measure of how fast water is applied - as well as with a high uniformity of distribution -how evenly the water is applied. Combined with correct irrigation scheduling, these low application rate, high uniformity systems prevent run-off while applying enough water to maintain the landscaping while minimizing water waste.

Dripline or in-line tubing is flexible, polyethylene tubing with pre-installed, pressure compensating emitters featuring specific flow rates (1/2 GPH or 1 GPH) and specific spacing between the emitters (12", 18" or 24"). It is available in 1/4", 1/2" and 5/8" diameters, and is ideal for narrow planting areas less than 8 feet in width. This is because dripline tubing delivers water at or near the root zone of the plant material, virtually eliminating unwanted evaporation and overspray typical of conventional spray systems. In addition, the soil type determines which spacing or flow rate is best for a specific application.

 

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Originally published in GreenSource
Originally published in May 2009

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