Water Effciency

Question 1

What is a baseline case?

Answer 1

a standard from which a basis of change can be measured for improvement

Question 2

What is a design case?

Answer 2

the actual project design metrics that are compared to a baseline to show efficiency gains

Question 3

What is the EPAct of 1992?

Answer 3

the energy policy act of 1992 requires that all toilets use no more than 1.6 gallons of water per flush and all urinals use no more than 1.0 gallon per flush, among other requirements. This standard is used in the LEED credits to calculate the baseline daily water usage of a project
Sets the max flush and flow rates in buildings

Question 4

What is evapotranspiration?

Answer 4

amount of water lost through evaporation in irrigation

Question 5

What is FTE? What does it stand for?

Answer 5

Full-time equivalent: the designation for a building occupant who spends 40 hours per week in the project buildings. transient occupants have FTE values based on their hours per week divided by 40

Question 6

What is reclaimed water?

Answer 6

wastewater that has been treated and purified for non potable uses

Question 7

What is submetering?

Answer 7

the installation of submeters on water systems to allow buildings to track water usage trends, monitor fixture performance, and identify leaks

Question 8

What is Watersense?

Answer 8

a partnership program by the us environmental protection agency (EPA) that brings together a variety of stakeholders to provide consumers with easy ways to save water, as both a label for products and an information resource to help people use water more efficiently. In LEED V4, WaterSense-labeled fixtures are required for WE prerequisite - indoor water use reduction

Question 9

How much potable water consumption are building responsible for in the US?

Answer 9

14%

Question 10

What is water usage measured in?

Answer 10

gallons per flush (gpf) and gallons per minute (gpm); industrial fixtures that use a lot of water are measured in gallons per hour (gph)

Question 11

What is used to calculate the number of occupants in a building with associated average daily water fixture use?

Answer 11

FTE full-time equivalent

Question 12

What are two ways to dispense water form a building

Answer 12

flush fixtures (toilets and urinals) and flow fixtures (faucets, hoses, and dishwashers

Question 13

What are the three types of water usage?

Answer 13

Indoor, outdoor, process water

Question 14

According to the EPA, how much total water used daily is used indoors?

Answer 14

70%

Question 15

What is the required minimum reduction of the baseline for water used indoors?

Answer 15

20%

Question 16

How much of the earth surface is water? How much is available for human use?

Answer 16

70%, less than 1%

Question 17

What are the water efficiency strategy types?

Answer 17

Reducing indoor water use strategies

Reducing outdoor water use strategies

Question 18

What are the reducing indoor water use strategies?

Answer 18

Install efficient fixtures
Waterless fixtures
Water reclamation systems
Install submeters
Reduce process water use

Question 19

How much more water efficient are WaterSense products than average products in the same category?

Answer 19

20%

Question 20

What are different technologies to achieve water use goals?

Answer 20

ultra-low-flow water closets, dual-flush water closets, ultra-low-flow urinals, low-flow aerators

Question 21

What are examples of waterless fixtures?

Answer 21

waterless urinals, composting toilets

Question 22

What are examples of water reclamation systems?

Answer 22

rainwater harvesting, greywater, reclaimed water

Question 23

How much can installing submeters reduce overall building water consumption?

Answer 23

30% to 40% in the first few months

Question 24

What are the reducing outdoor water use strategies?

Answer 24

Choose native and locally adapted species
Use xeriscaping
Select efficient irrigation technologies
Harvest rainwater
Use non potable water for irrigation
Install submeters

Question 25

How much are dirp irrigation systems water efficient?

Answer 25

90% over traditional sprinklers that only deliver 65% of the water to the landscape, losing the rest of the water due to evapotranspiration or run-off

Question 26

How much does outdoor water use account for the average household water use?

Answer 26

30%