Aug. 22, 2012
Sonoma County Water Agency’s award-winning High Efficiency Plumbing Fixture Direct Install Program that includes free installation of waterless urinals to its customers is a model on how private and public partnerships can benefit the local community, the economy and the environment.
“The program offers financial benefits to both the customers and contractors so we’re confident we’ll repeat the success from the previous year” said Brian Lee, who oversees the program for Sonoma County Water Agency.
It was a natural fit as Sonoma’s water agency is promoting efforts to conserve water and Falcon provides the most water-saving option of all – urinals that don’t require flushing because they don’t use any water at all. Moreover, the majority of those who signed up so far in 2012 are residents, so commercial properties are encouraged to participate in the program and install Falcon’s waterless urinals.
“This program shows how government incentives to go green are making a big difference in the community. We are working with many water providers to replicate and promote similar programs in their municipalities,” said Richard Sang, Director of Government Affairs at Falcon.
One such example is the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and its Save Water, Save a Buck program, where customers can save up to $500 per urinal when replacing water-guzzling urinals with waterless ones. MWD covers 26 member water agencies, and its program is available everywhere from Oxnard and San Diego to Riverside.
Since the beginning of Sonoma’s program, Falcon has accounted for most of the waterless urinals installed. That number is expected to grow with increased interest in conservation and Falcon’s growing market share in waterless urinals. With each Falcon urinal saving an average of up to 40,000 gallons of water per year, businesses can reduce both their water and sewer costs by installing waterless urinals. This direct install program provides immediate savings to the customer with no up-front costs. As an added benefit, the program supports the local economy by putting plumbers to work.
The High Efficiency Fixture Direct-Install Program works as follows. Eligible properties apply and are selected on a first come, first served basis. They can choose a plumber from a list of participating contractors to perform the retrofits. Urinal retrofits are typically completed in a couple of hours and will not disrupt customer operations. The selected plumbing contractor purchases the fixtures from the approved list of vendors that include Falcon, install them for free and get reimbursement from the water agency. As a result, there are no out-of-pocket expenses to the customer with typical existing plumbing.
About Falcon Waterfree Technologies
Founded in 2000, Los Angeles-based Falcon Waterfree Technologies is a market leader in the waterfree urinals market. Falcon Waterfree has manufacturing facilities in 7 countries and offices and affiliates in more than 50 nations. Falcon Waterfree products are in use around the world in stadiums and arenas, schools and universities, airports and every type of commercial and institutional facility. Falcon is privately owned by Mapleton Investments and Capricorn Investment Group. For more information, visit: http://www.falconwaterfree.com.
Visit http://www.mwdsaveabuck.com/devices_01.php?id_dvce=14 for more information on the MWD’s Save Water, Save a Buck program that Falcon is a part of.
Municipalities interested in learning about and implementing a similar program, please contact Richard Sang at rsang(at)falconwaterfree.com.
About the Sonoma County Water Agency
The Sonoma County Water Agency is working to secure our future by investing in our water resources, community and environment. The Water Agency provides water supply, flood protection and sanitation services for portions of Sonoma and Marin counties. For more information, visit: http://www.sonomacountywater.org.
For more information on the High Efficiency Fixture Direct-Install Program and participating sanitation districts, visit http://www.sonomacountywater.org/direct-install.
