EPA WaterSense

WaterSense is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program designed to encourage water efficiency in the United States through the use of a special label on consumer products. It was launched in June 2006.^[1]

Background

WaterSense is a partnership program sponsored by EPA with the goal of protecting the future of the U.S. water supply. By promoting and enhancing the market for water efficient products and services, WaterSense makes every drop count by leveraging relationships with key utility, manufacturer and retail partners across the U.S.

WaterSense is not a regulatory program, but rather a voluntary program. EPA develops specifications for water efficient products through a public process. If a manufacturer makes a product that meets those specifications, the product is eligible for third-party testing to ensure the stated efficiency and performance criteria have been met. If the product passes the test, the manufacturer is rewarded with the right to put the WaterSense label on that product.^[2]

WaterSense makes it easy for consumers to differentiate among products that use less water and reinforces that saving water is easy and often does not require a major lifestyle change.

Products

Toilets, bathroom sink faucets (and accessories), flushing urinals, single family new homes, showerheads and irrigation professionals who have undergone training by WaterSense-labeled certification programs are all products/services that are readily available to consumers.

Products that seek the WaterSense label must:

• Achieve national water savings
• Provide measurable results
• Perform as well as or better than similar products in the same category
• Be water-efficient, using at least 20 percent less water than EPA's fixture-specific water use baseline.^[3]

Partners

To help get products on shelves and spread the word about WaterSense, EPA recruits partners in several different categories including:

• Utilities, communities, state and local governments
• Manufacturers
• Retailers and distributors
• Organizations that provide qualified certification programs
• Certified professionals
• Non-profit organizations and trade associations.

Partner responsibilities include:

• Promoting WaterSense as well as water efficiency
• Adhering to WaterSense partner logo guidelines
• Providing annual data
• Granting EPA rights to use partner name on the Agency website or alongside other program promotional efforts.

WaterSense also utilizes promotional partners who endorse and publicize the program among their constituents. Promotional partners include utilities, state and local governments, trade associations, and other non-governmental organizations. Landscape irrigation professionals who are certified by WaterSense-labeled certification programs can also become partners.^[4]

Specifications

EPA’s first specification, released in January 2007, was written for WaterSense-labeled toilets. Final specifications have also been written for bathroom sink faucets, flushing urinals, new single family homes, showerheads and certification programs for irrigation professionals.^[1]

The Agency issued revised draft specifications for landscape irrigation controllers in January 2011.^[5]

Specifications for pre-rinse spray valves and water softeners are under development as of 2011.^[6][7]

Awards

In 2008, the EPA initiated its WaterSense Partners of the Year award, designed to recognize organizations and individuals who did the most in the previous year to promote water efficiency and saving water.^[8] The awards have four categories: promotional partner of the year; manufacturer partner of the year; retailer and distributor partner of the year; and, irrigation partner of the year. In 2010, the awards were expanded to include Excellence Awards, which recognize additional organizations and individuals whose WaterSense support stood out in one or more of the evaluation categories.^[9] In 2013, WaterSense added an additional category to recognize partners for exemplary efforts with WaterSense initiatives called the Sustained Excellence Awards.

References

External links

• WaterSense at the EPA