Environmental Leader

Flushing urinals that use 50 percent less water than standard models will be the first commercial building product to get the Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense label. The WaterSense program is the equivalent to the Energy Star rating system for energy efficiency.

For each unit installed, businesses could save 4,000 gallons of water a year, according to a press release. The current federal standard allows a maximum of one gallon of water per flush.

EPA estimates that up to 7.8 million urinals in use today are old and inefficient.

To give an illustration of the amount of water that could be saved, EPA estimated that a college that has 10,000 students and installs WaterSense urinals could save enough water every year to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

Urinals bearing the label will be available in a matter of months, EPA says.

Last October, EPA announced its first WaterSense partners of the year:

– Promotional Partner of the Year: The Saving Water Partnership
– Manufacturer Partner of the Year: Kohler Co.
– Retailer and Distributor Partner of the Year: Ferguson
– Irrigation Partner of the Year: Timothy Malooly of Shorewood, Minn.