EPA WaterSense

WaterSense is a program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), designed to encourage water efficiency in the United States through the use of a special label on consumer products.

The WaterSense label was designed to be voluntarily, sought out by manufacturers, and requires that water fixtures use at least 20% less than the federally mandated standards as established by EPACT92.

[3] Using the efficiency standards established by EPACT92 as a baseline, the EPA instituted the following flow-rate guidelines for WaterSense: toilets must be manufactured with a maximum flush volume of 1.28 gpf; showerheads must have a maximum flow-rate of 2.0 gpm at 80 psi; and bathroom faucets must be manufactured with a low-flow volume rate of 1.5 gpm.

[4] Low-flow toilets were the first products to receive the WaterSense label in 2007, followed by bathroom sink faucets in October of that same year.

[10] There are no federal standards for irrigation equipment in the U.S., so the EPA uses references average system efficiency to establish a baseline and volume-based guidelines.

[13] Consumer products, such as residential and commercial toilets; bathroom faucets (and accessories); urinals; showerheads; irrigation controllers; and spray sprinkler bodies are eligible for receiving the WaterSense label.

Promotional partners include utilities, state and local governments, trade associations, and other non-governmental organizations.

The EPA requires that all manufacturer and retailer/distributor partners provide data on their distribution and activities regarding WaterSense product shipment, sales and outreach.

[18] LBNL used this data to create an arithmetic model to estimate the impacts that WaterSense has had on water conservation in the United States.