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How Businesses Can Conserve Water
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Business New Haven
11/11/2002
By: Anne-Marie Brungard
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Let's face it - conservation is the thing to do.
Your business can get involved in water conservation efforts and save money too. Some fairly simple changes can impact the bottom line within one to two years. Specialists report that savings in energy bills (water, sewer and heating) can be as high as 15- to 30-percent. In many cases savings of 20- to 25-percent are being achieved. There are also positive benefits for the community at large. Your company's improved efficiency benefits the regional economy that thrives in a competitive business environment. In addition, wastewater is reduced - placing less demand on water treatment plants.
Conducting a Water-use Audit
Steps to becoming more water efficient start with conducting a water audit of the business. A water audit is undertaken to determine if and where excess water is being used, and to determine ways in which the volume used can be reduced. Water audit results are an important component in the design of an action plan to make your operation water use efficient.
A water audit includes:
Defining the water system through preparing an overall water flow schematic.
Developing an inventory of all of water use processes and operations in your organization.
Preparing a "water balance" by making sure that all water supplied to the business is balanced by all significant water uses within.
The water audit result will be an account of the water volumes used by each process and operation, summed up for the overall company. In addition, the audit will offer information on water quality required for and discharged from each operation.
Once the audit is complete, a program of measures or actions is designed to make the most efficient use of water. The action options selected will be based on your goals and objectives, the cost benefits, and a variety of other criteria determined by your team.
Possible Actions in Industrial and Commercial Companies:
If the company's manufacturing process includes recycling paperboard, evaluate the different levels and quality of water used in the processes. Pump and motor cooling components may be able to use other sources of water already used in the factory process. This reduces the need for city water. Your company may be able to change the type of cooling tower, even converting to an air-cooling tower that uses no water. The same can be said for seal water. Seals on pumps often use water for lubrication; a lesser quality (recycled) water can be used from within the current factory process.
Update or replace timers and controls on systems used in factory processes that involve using water for rinsing or cleaning, like plating companies. Automatic controls can carefully time the placement of water throughout the system reducing the amount of water needed.
Replace water-cooled condensers with different types of technology that use less water - and in some instances - no water at all.
Use recirculating systems - find creative ways to use water more than once before it goes into sanitary systems. Closed loop cooling reduces the need to constantly add new, clean (city) water to the cooling loop. Newer features include filling the system once and using refrigeration or air-cooling methods to provide the cooling necessary.
Tips and suggestions for small business owners:
Establish a leak repair program.
Check for leaks and maintain your systems regularly. The savings really add up here. While you are carefully watching your water usage, it is important to make sure that water is not slipping away due to undetected leaks in your system.
The toilet is a common source of unnoticed leaks. Undetected, gallons of water can be wasted each day. Often leaks occur when the toilet is out of adjustment or parts are worn.
Remember to check all faucets and pipes periodically. Watch for drips, and quickly replace faulty parts. A leaking faucet can waste as much drinking water in a single day that is required for one person to stay alive for an entire week.
Electronic sensory devices can be purchased that are placed under major appliances, such as dishwashers and washing machines that may spring leaks. These devices will alert you as soon as water starts to collect underneath.
Install low-flow showers and toilets. Some restrooms still have toilets using upwards of five gallons of water per flush. New fixtures can use as little as 1.6 gallons of water.
Retrofit the flushometers in flushometer toilets.
Replace aerators with low-flow (1.5 gallon per minute) aerators on bathroom sinks.
Some Ways Small Businesses are Doing Their Part
Some hotels are offering a "green hotel" program where guests can opt to not have their sheets and towels washed each day. Restaurants have established programs where their dishwashers are on timers and commit to fixing any drips as soon as possible. Also, be prepared to have water served only upon request. Golf courses are weighing in and getting creative planting native grasses that don't need watering. To further conserve they may consider employing a grounds person at night to shut off the automatic sprinkler system if it rains.
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