As a green building professional, you know the importance of staying on the leading edge of green construction trends, technologies, and tactics. With this in mind, here’s a pop quiz:

What is WaterSense^®?

A. The latest in IQ-boosting sports drinks to keep you sharp on the jobsite;

B. Leak-detecting piping for residential construction; or

C. A water-efficiency partnership and certification program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)?

If you answered C, congratulations, you have done your homework. For the rest of you, these crib notes should hopefully prove useful in learning about an important new chapter in green building.

A Splash of Recent History
The need to protect water resources for the future is becoming more and more apparent. Aging infrastructure and long-term droughts are draining supplies, yet our demand for water continues to increase as our population grows. Between 1950 and 2005, the U.S. population doubled, but our thirst for water more than tripled. It’s not just increased demand, but involuntary waste that’s putting a strain on America’s water. More than 1 trillion gallons of water are lost each year to household leaks in the United States.

EPA launched WaterSense in 2006 in response to a growing need to save water for future generations. WaterSense conducted consumer research and developed a label for water-efficient products that perform as well as or better than standard models. To earn the WaterSense label, products must be independently tested and certified to meet EPA’s efficiency and performance criteria. Since 2006, EPA has developed and issued technical specifications and provided the WaterSense label for toilets, faucets, showerheads, and flushing urinals that are independently tested and certified to meet its efficiency and performance criteria. To date, more than 2,700 models of these plumbing fixtures in a wide range of styles and price points have earned the WaterSense label. WaterSense also labels certification programs for irrigation professionals that focus on water-efficient techniques.

While WaterSense labeled products can be included to enhance green building program certifications, until recently there was not a national voluntary standard for what constitutes a water-efficient home. In 2006, EPA began developing one. WaterSense gathered a great deal of input from the green building community, produced two drafts for public comment, conducted a pilot program to build new homes to a draft specification, and released its final 2009 WaterSense Specification for Single-Family New Homes last December.

For the first time, home buyers can build or design a house certified to be water-efficient inside and out, allowing consumers concerned with saving resources or lowering their monthly utility bills to do so through one of their most important investments.

And for the first time, homebuilders—especially green builders—are eligible to partner with WaterSense. Builders of all sizes, as well as homebuilders’ associations, can join the network of nearly 2,000 plumbing manufacturers, retailers, water utilities, state and local governments, nonprofits, and other organizations and professionals committed to promoting water-efficient homes, products, and practices under the umbrella of WaterSense.

Savings Inside and Out
Builders who partner with EPA commit to constructing at least one single-family residence within a year of partnership to the WaterSense new home specification, which provides a blueprint for a home that saves water, energy, and at least $100 annually on utility bills.

These homes feature WaterSense labeled plumbing products and an efficient hot water delivery system that reduces the amount of time and energy it takes for hot water to reach the tap. If appliances such as a dishwasher and washing machine are installed, they must be ENERGY STAR^® qualified. Outside the home, the front yard is landscaped to use less water while still being beautiful and easy to maintain. An irrigation system, if included, must be designed or installed and audited by a WaterSense irrigation partner who is certified through a WaterSense labeled certification program.

By including these and other features, EPA has estimated that WaterSense labeled new homes save about 10,000 gallons of water annually compared to typical new homes, enough to wash up to 400 loads of laundry. In addition, the amount of energy saved from heating less water is enough to power a television for four years.

To ensure efficiency and performance criteria are met, the home must undergo independent, third-party inspection and certification, giving a homeowner confidence in the home’s water-efficient features. A certification provider licensed by EPA oversees inspections and issues the WaterSense label certificate once all criteria have been met. Homes are inspected to meet the criteria by water-efficiency inspectors that might also be trained home energy raters or other green building professionals. WaterSense designed the home’s single-visit, water-efficiency inspection so that it could be “plugged in” to other green building inspections, such as ENERGY STAR qualified new home inspections, to save builders time and money when seeking multiple certifications.

WaterSense also provides tools tailored for builder partners to help guide them through building a WaterSense labeled new home, marketing their partnership and WaterSense labeled homes, and educating potential home buyers about the importance of saving water for the future.

Efficient Homes Add More Value
With a specification backed by EPA and third-party inspection and certification, WaterSense labeled new homes can add water-efficiency cachet to homes striving to meet local and national green building programs, such as the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED^®) for Homes and the National Green Building Standard^TM. Perhaps the most important value added for green builders is the fact that a home that saves money and preserves precious resources is an attractive selling point for homeowners watching their bottom line.

According to McGraw-Hill Construction’s SmartMarket Report, 40 percent of builders agreed green features make it easier to sell homes in a down economy. When the housing market finally begins to rebound across the country, buyers will look for houses that save energy, water, and other resources, but also protect their wallets. And although water has usually been one of the more inexpensive utilities, water costs are rising across much of the United States—more than 10 percent from 2006 to 2008, according to data from the American Water Works Association’s 2008 Water and Wastewater Rate Survey. Partnering with WaterSense can start a ripple effect of savings—for you, your customers, and the community at large.

About the Author
Alicia Marrs is the partnership and outreach specialist for the WaterSense new homes program, which was launched in late 2009. Ms. Marrs can be contacted at marrs.alicia@epa.gov.

To learn more about WaterSense labeled new homes and partnership opportunities, visit www.epa.gov/watersense.