Did you know that household leaks can waste more than 1 trillion gallons a year nationwide? Water is vital to the survival of everything on the planet and is limited in supply. The Earth might seem like it has abundant water, but in fact less than 1 percent is available for human use. Managing water is a growing concern in the United States. Communities across the country are starting to face challenges regarding water supply and water infrastructure. This is also true for New Jersey, despite an average rainfall of 44 inches per year.
To help address this problem, WaterSense was launched in 2006. WaterSense is an EPA-sponsored partnership program that seeks to protect the future of our nation’s water supply by promoting water efficiency and enhancing the market for water-efficient products, programs, and practices.
WaterSense brings together local water utilities and governments, product manufacturers, retailers, consumers, and other stakeholders to:
* Decrease indoor and outdoor non-agricultural water use through the adoption of more efficient products and practices.
* Help consumers make water-efficient choices, including differentiating between products and services in the marketplace and adopting simple daily activities that reduce water use.
* Encourage innovation in manufacturing
* Establish and standardize rigorous certification criteria that ensure product efficiency, performance, and quality.
WaterSense helps consumers identify water-efficient products and programs that meet WaterSense water efficiency and performance criteria. Products carrying the WaterSense label perform well, help save money, and encourage innovation in manufacturing.
WaterSense partners with manufacturers, retailers and distributors, and utilities to bring WaterSense labeled products to the marketplace and make it easy to purchase high-performing, water-efficient products.
WaterSense also partners with irrigation professionals and irrigation certification programs to promote water-efficient landscape irrigation practices.
Check out the WaterSense website to see what you can do!