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EPA's Water Management Plans
In This Section
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Water Management Plans help individual facilities set long- and short-term water conservation goals. EPA reached its Executive Order 13123 goal of incorporating plans at five percent of its facilities (or two of the laboratories it owns and operates) by the end of 2002. Currently EPA has Water Management Plans for 18 facilities (listed below), with additional plans in development for Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
Gulf Breeze, FL , Gulf Ecology Division Laboratory (PDF) (19 pp, 547K). Plan completed in September 2007. Eight best management practices are in place at the laboratory. Additionally, the laboratory plans to install and monitor make-up and blow-down flow meters on all cooling towers, closely monitor cooling tower cycles of concentration, install .5 gallons per minute faucet aerators on bathroom sinks, evaluate an air handler condensate recovery system for one of the facilities, and maintain appropriate nozzles on all washdown hoses.
Grosse Ile, MI, Large Lakes and Rivers Research Station (PDF) (16 pp, 465K). Plan completed in August 2007. Three best management practices are in place at the laboratory. Additionally, the laboratory plans to install .5 gallons per minute faucet aerators on bathroom sinks, upgrade the toilets and urinals that do not comply with the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and eliminate single pass cooling water for air conditioner cooling in one of the facility's rooms.
Athens, GA, Science and Ecosystem Support Division Laboratory (PDF) (19 pp, 405K). Plan completed in July 2006. Five best management practices are in place at the laboratory. Additionally, the laboratory plans to monitor monthly water use and evaluate trends, evaluate continuous flow of well water to the fish preparation area, upgrade the site's irrigation system, evaluate the air handler condensate recovery system, and replace faucet aerators.
Richmond, CA, Region 9 Laboratory (PDF) (16 pp, 308K). Plan completed in June 2006. Six best management practices are in place at the laboratory. Additionally, the Laboratory replaced faucet aerators with 0.5 gallons per minute flow restricting aerators, which further reduce sanitary water use.
Athens, GA, Ecosystem Research Division Laboratory (PDF) (22 pp, 799K). Plan completed in July 2006. Five best management practices are in place at the laboratory, and consideration is being given to further water conservation by increasing cooling tower capacity, evaluating the air handler condensate recovery system, installing a tempering water control valve on the castle sterilizer, and several other efforts.
Edison, New Jersey, Region 2 Laboratory (PDF) (19 pp, 779K). Plan completed in April 2006. The laboratory established an Environmental Management System (EMS) to meet the facility's nine resource conservation goals. Additionally the facility has identified seven EMS water management objectives to help reduce the discharge of pollutants to stormwater systems.
Ada, Oklahoma, Robert S. Kerr Environmental Research Center (PDF) (15 pp, 550K). Plan completed in November 2005. Six best management practices are in place at the laboratory, and consideration is being given to further water conservation by upgrading the irrigation system controls and installing lavatory faucet flow restrictors.
Manchester, Washington, Region 10 Environmental Laboratory (PDF) (17 pp, 381K). Plan completed in August 2005. This laboratory uses an Environmental Management System (EMS) to achieve its water management goals. Manchester has identified the reduction of water consumption as an objective and is working to reduce water use for each full-time employee at the laboratory.
Houston, Texas, Region 6 Environmental Services Branch Laboratory (PDF) (17 pp, 1.2MB). Plan completed in July 2005. In addition to adopting five best management practices, the laboratory has developed a drought contingency plan and is considering upgrading the irrigation system controls, installing low-flow showerheads and faucet flow restrictors, and upgrading to water-efficient toilets to achieve additional reductions in water use.
Corvallis, Oregon Western Ecology Division Laboratory (PDF) (17 pp, 796K). Plan completed in August 2004. To reduce irrigation water use, this laboratory is working with a landscape architect to convert turf areas to beds planted with shrubs and plants native to the Northwest. To date, approximated 0.5 acres of turf have been converted through this ongoing project.
Corvallis, Oregon Willamette Research Station (WRS) (PDF) (14 pp, 989K). Plan completed in August 2004. Rather than irrigate the surrounding landscape, the laboratory allows the surrounding pasture grass to go dormant in winter and recover with natural precipitation in the spring. WRS also upgraded its faucets and showerheads with water-conserving flow restrictors in August 2004.
Newport, Oregon Western Ecology Division Laboratory (PDF) (15 pp, 1.0MB). Plan completed in August 2004. In addition to adopting five best management practices, the laboratory's urinals were converted to a no-flush design in July 2004.
Cincinnati, Ohio, Andrew W. Breidenbach Environmental Research Center (PDF) (18 pp, 796K). Plan completed in July 2004.The facility adopted nine of the 10 best management practices, including installing water-efficient shower heads and faucets and implementing processes and mechanical systems that significantly reduce the use of single-pass cooling. The facility also began using a magnetic cooling tower water treatment, which reduces chemical buildup and increases water efficiency.
Las Vegas, Nevada Laboratory (PDF) (11 pp, 235K). Plan completed in July 2004. In addition to six best management practices being implemented, including low flow faucet/shower and sanitary fixtures, and elimination of single pass cooling in all applications where it is cost effective to do so, the facility is also beginning an EMS implementation project, which will help to ensure consistent water use monitoring and establish additional water conservation goals.
Duluth, Minnesota, Mid-Continent Ecology Division Laboratory (PDF) (15 pp, 360K). Plan completed in January 2004. Although the laboratory already has multiple water conserving efforts in place, EPA intends to pursue a culture water reclamation system that has the potential to recycle 19 million gallons of water.
Narragansett, Rhode Island, Atlantic Ecology Division Laboratory (PDF) (20 pp, 200K). Plan completed in October 2003. The facility has taken strides towards piloting a sustainable master plan. Such a plan may incorporate numerous water related elements, including a green roof, cistern, and retention ponds.
Golden, Colorado, Region 8 Laboratory (PDF) (17 pp, 326K). Plan completed in October 2003. One notable opportunity for water conservation at this laboratory is to convert the landscape to xeriscaping, which could potentially lower the facility's water use by approximately 54 percent.
Ann Arbor, Michigan, National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory (NVFEL) (PDF) (19 pp, 270K). Plan completed in April 2003. NVFEL reduced its water consumption by 78 percent from FY 1993-1995 (baseline) to FY 2002 as the result of an Energy Saving Performance Contract (ESPC) designed to improve energy and water efficiency. This laboratory demonstrates how water management plans and ESPCs can be integrated to provide greater water reductions.
Fort Meade, Maryland, Environmental Science Center (PDF) (18 pp, 285K). Plan completed in December 2002. Cooling tower make-up water accounted for 48 percent of Fort Meade's total water consumption in FY 2002. Since cooling towers perform an integral function at many facilities, maximizing their water efficiency is the best option for controlling this source of water use. Thus, EPA is metering the Ft. Meade cooling tower's water use and tracking consumption trends weekly. Additionally, conductivity, a measure of dissolved ions in water, is closely monitored to minimize cooling tower make-up and blowdown water.
Chelmsford, Massachusetts, New England Regional Laboratory (NERL) (PDF) (20 pp, 930K). Plan competed in December 2002. Xeriscaping is used throughout NERL's grounds, which incorporates native plant species, islands of trees and shrubs, and open areas planted with grasses and wildflowers. The landscape design minimizes the need for irrigation and incorporates an onsite well for the few occasions when water is needed. Furthermore, the building and site design reroute stormwater so that approximately one-third of stormwater runoff recharges the nearby wetlands.
EPA is tracking water conservation progress at these and other facilities.