Rivers, lakes, the atmosphere and groundwater represent only 1 percent of Earth’s fresh water. By 2030, half of the global population will be living in areas of high water stress. Our growing population and resource-intensive farming is projected to exceed water supply by 40%, putting that 1% under great threat.

According to the latest research conducted by SIWI, already almost 20% of the world’s population live in areas where water resources are approaching or has exceeded sustainable limits and more than 75% of river flows are withdrawn for agriculture, industry and domestic purposes. In the hospitality industry, water plays a determining part in everyday operations and service.

For many hotels, water accounts for 10% of utility bills, and by purchasing fresh water and then by disposing it as waste water, most hotels pay twice for it. Depending on their water efficiency strategies, hotels can reduce the amount of water consumed per guest per night by up to 50%. For example, hotel guests can make an immediate impact by have guests reuse their towels, saving thousands of gallons of water per day. Beyond the obvious cost savings, hotels have an equally compelling moral reason to save as water is a limited resource, and hotels have a responsibility to not use more than necessary, and reduce the risk of water pollution.

With climate change worsening and the number of eco-conscious guests growing, sustainable practices should be embraced in the hospitality industry to reduce environmental impact while enhancing the destination experience.

Some tips for hotels to reduce their water usage are:

Public Amenities

• Install waterfree Urinals and water-efficient Toilets

Guest Rooms

• Give guests the opportunity to request clean sheets and towels as needed.
• Install water-efficient toilets and showers

Kitchens

• Install water efficient fixtures and flow regulators to reduce waste

Outdoor Areas

• Use recycled water
• Plant native plants
• Use mulch

Swimming Pools

• Optimize and recycle backwash
• Use temperature regulation
• Perform proper maintenance

Laundry

• Use recycled water
• Maintain water temperature steadily. This can provide both heat energy savings and a dramatic drop in greenhouse emissions.

Did you know LADWP offers $500 in rebates per waterfree urinal? Learn more about it here

Last March, California officials announced that El Niño brought a greater snowpack in the Sierra Nevada mountain range than there has been in years. Despite this years snowpack, there are plenty of worrying signs in the mountain range, which, according to the state Department of Water Resources, is a crucial natural water reservoir. Natural systems and humans depend on the accumulation of snow as a vital source of water in the Northern Hemisphere. After the snow melts, it flows into rivers and reservoirs, proving about 30 percent of water to Californians in warmer months.

By capturing water in solid form in cold months and releasing it over time, snow serves as a backup reservoir, and any changes can affect how much water is available for people, industry and agriculture.

The snowpack is measured by inserting special metal tubes in the snow and later calculating how much water would result if the snow is melted. For example, 30 inches of snow on March 30 could be equivalent to about 12 inches of water. Usually, dry and powdery snow holds about 10 to 12 percent moisture by volume, and later accumulation and compression can increase the moisture content to about 40 percent.

Monitoring stations that record moisture conditions of the snowpack throughout the mountain range are already showing the effects of warmer temperatures. Historically reliable snow zones, where snow accumulates until March or early April and then melts, now behave as lower elevation zones, where the snow goes through a cycle of accumulation and melting at a faster rate. As temperatures warm, the altitude at which water is now stored becomes higher in elevation. This change in elevation means that less terrain is covered in snow.

Because warmer air can hold more moisture, researchers are expecting an increase of liquid precipitation rather than solid form in some areas, which means less snowpack storage and faster uncaptured runoff.

Despite a more favorable and wet El Niño across the northern half of the state, El Niño did not bring any major storms in Southern California, and with California’s traditional rainy season quickly fading into a hot, dry summer, the snowfall decline could present important complications to the hydrology of an area already expecting “dry winters” from La Niña.

With the uncertainty of the weather and the exacerbated effects of global warming, California needs to invest in a more sustainable infrastructure through water saving technologies that will lead the nation’s transformation toward a more drought resilient future.

[CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR WATER CONSERVATION TECHNOLOGIES]

Despite some of the relief that El Niño has brought to southern California the last couple of weeks, California is still in it’s 5th year of drought and must prepare for an inevitably drier future. This means the parched Golden State must find fresh water sources and more efficient ways to use what little water can be found. In order to do so, California has been turning to Australia for solutions.

Australia suffered from one of the worst droughts in the country’s recorded history, spanning a horrendous 12 years from 1997 to 2009. During the “Millennium Drought”, the water levels from the southeast portion of the continent dropped to an all-time capacity of 25.6 percent before the drought finally ceased. The implementation of policies and programs along with water conservation technologies proved to be the perfect combination of solutions to keep the continent afloat. Incredibly, through these programs the country was able to reduce water demand per capita by almost 50 percent.

However, California cannot simply copy Australia’s list of technologies and apply them. The state has to analyze the applied lessons, and address them accordingly to each city and town. Californians have the potential to demonstrate the viable suitable alternatives to optimize efficiency and sustainable behaviors to lead the nation’s water transformation toward a more resilient future. Here are three of Australia’s most successful water conservation methods that can help the Golden State:

1. Water Management Policies and Rebates

In the late 1980’s, the city of Melbourne passed legislation for an integrated government response in case of drought. As a result, a unified response from government agencies created a mixture of efforts focused on water restrictions, water pricing, public education, target setting and rebates that transformed the behavior of Adelaide and Melbourne residents. Based on gamification, the government also created incentives to get consumers conserve as much water as possible and increase awareness. Prior to the drought, the government also invested millions in infrastructure, including a pipeline that would deliver water over the mountains and a recycled water treatment plant.

2.  Recycled Water and Water Reuse

Wastewater treatment plants in Western Australia originally started recycling water to remove solids and contaminents before it was released into rivers or the ocean. Today, this recycled water is used  to flush toilets, irrigate golf courses and crops fields, and is used in industrial processes. Citizens also carried the burden, and started investing in diversion devices and treatment systems that filter and disinfect greywater. By 2010, businesses and residents cut their water use to half of what it was in 1997 when the drought began.

3. Green Technology

Once the drought escalated, The Green Building Council of Australia encouraged through rebates the use of waterless urinals such as Falcon’s Waterfree Technologies, dual-flush toilets, water-saving shower heads and rainwater tanks for new developments. Nowadays, developers are also required to provide specific services, such as cleaning water, in their green space.  Rebates for these water conservation devices are also available to most of Southern California, Falcon is committed to providing free turn-key rebate processing to commercial customers interested in upgrading to our Hybrid and Waterfree Urinal Technologies.  If interested in receiving a free restroom audit, please contact Liam Dow at  LDow@falconwaterfree.com.

In order to make a more substantial transformation, California needs to change how they relate to water and their declining water supplies. What is remarkable about Australia’s conservation efforts is that even though the drought is over, Australians now consume significantly less water. Their lessons can provide direction for how California can move towards a more sustainable and drought resilient future despite the unpredictability of the weather.

In 1980, John Todd started experimenting with biologically diverse systems to deal with recalcitrant contamination issues. His research and patents have influenced a generation of wastewater technologies. He envisions a world in which natural treatment systems are at the heart of our industries and cities and reintegrate human life back into the biological cycle.

Eight years later, Dr. Todd founded John Todd Ecological Design (JTED) to commercialize this vision and to create an accessible alternative to conventional wastewater treatment. In the last 28 years, Dr. John Todd has completed projects on five continents dealing with waterborne waste streams ranging from domestic sewage to industrial wastes.

JTED’s Restorers use, biodiversity to create biological complex systems capable of treating the most difficult contaminants and human-waste streams. For example, the Eco-Machine design for the Omega Center for Sustainable Living in Rhinebeck, NY, treats up to 52,000 gallons/day of wastewater for irrigation of a leach field in a space used as a classroom, event space and yoga studio.

By using 12,000 plants composed of 20 native species, the Restorer in the Baima canal was able to reduce odors, eliminate floating solids and improve the aesthetics of the neighborhood. Additionally, the walkway down the center of the Restorer became a recreation area for the members of the community.

John Todd Ecological Design commitment to design initiatives that give more than what it takes from nature is also setting a precedent to reversing the ongoing contamination of oceans. The Ocean Restorers are unlike any other bio solution John Todd Ecological Design has ever created. The Ocean Restorers are catamaran lookalike ships, powered by solar and wind energy, and filled with biological complex systems of sea grass, oyster reef, kelp forest and algae turfs that would be able to filter more than 1 billion gallons of sea water per day

We love when people are committed to design sustainable initiatives that help us conserve our natural resources. Combining water efficient technologies, such as Hybrid or waterfree Urinals, with these other revolutionary recapture technologies will  be crucial to build a sustainable long term infrastructure and conserve  our most valuable resource, water.

Last April, Gov. Jerry Brown called for a statewide water-savings mandate of 25%. During the four months following this mandate, Californians quickly adapted to the new conservation requirements. But as temperatures have dropped, conservation has stalled. This February, for the first time since the mandate began, urban water users have missed the conservation goal.

With California going into its fifth straight year of serious drought and El Niño failing to replenish the state’s water reservoirs, the probability for a “March (Water) Miracle” is very low.

With this January much warmer than usual, State water consumption dropped to only 17.1 percent in January, compared to 2013.  Usually during the winter months, there is a lower consumer consumption as residents use less water for outdoor irrigation. With this unusual hot and dry February, building on low conservation results in January, officials are insisting that Californians buckle down on water conservation efforts through the remaining winter and upcoming spring months.

Californians have been able to commit to the 25% reduction in the past. In fact, water-saving efforts have conserved up to 374 billion gallons of water stored in reservoirs so far, but California must continue to stay on course and embed conservation technologies into the infrastructure.

Conservation efforts include: watering early or later in the evening, gardening with native species in order to reduce or eliminate irrigation, inspecting pipes for leaks, taking maximum of 5 minute-long showers, turning the water off when not using it (brushing teeth, washing hair) and buying water-saving devices such as high efficiency toilets and urinals, such as the Falcon Hybrid.

Sustainability is a journey with no final destination, and the twenty-five percent mandated by Governor Brown should act as the start of California’s water conservation efforts, not the end.