WaterSense labeled commercial buildings

1. Assess your facility's water use baseline: Gather 12 months of water utility bills and metering data to understand current consumption patterns across all end uses (irrigation, restrooms, cooling, kitchens, etc.).

1. Review the applicable WaterSense specification: Visit the EPA WaterSense website to identify the specification that applies to your building type (e.g., office, hotel, school, hospital). Each specification defines the performance thresholds your building must meet.

1. Conduct a water audit: Use EPA's free WaterSense at Work best management practices guide and free assessment tools to identify inefficiencies, leaks, and upgrade opportunities across your facility's water-using systems.

1. Implement water efficiency improvements: Install WaterSense-labeled fixtures (faucets, toilets, showerheads), optimize irrigation systems, address leaks, and adopt operational best practices to bring water use in line with EPA benchmarks.

1. Engage a qualified third-party verifier: Identify an EPA-approved third-party verifier who will review your documentation and, if required, conduct an on-site inspection to confirm your building meets WaterSense performance criteria.

1. Submit documentation for verification: Provide the third-party verifier with utility records, metering data, fixture inventories, and evidence of implemented water-saving measures. The verifier submits findings to the EPA.

1. Receive the WaterSense label: Once the EPA confirms your building meets the specification, you will be awarded the WaterSense label and listed in the EPA's online registry of labeled buildings.

1. Maintain performance and promote your achievement: Display the WaterSense label in marketing materials, communicate your achievement to tenants and stakeholders, and continue monitoring water use to sustain your certified performance level.

WaterSense labeled commercial buildings are evaluated against EPA-developed specifications that set water use performance thresholds specific to each building type. The core assessment focuses on a building's actual water consumption relative to a baseline derived from comparable facilities, typically requiring buildings to perform at least 20% more efficiently than average peers.

Key evaluation areas include:

- Overall water use intensity: Total water consumption normalized by relevant building metrics (e.g., square footage, occupancy, number of rooms for hotels) is compared against EPA-established benchmarks for the building category. - Indoor water fixtures and fittings: Documentation that installed fixtures (toilets, urinals, faucets, showerheads, pre-rinse spray valves) meet WaterSense or equivalent efficiency standards. - Cooling tower and HVAC water use: For applicable buildings, cycles of concentration and water treatment practices for cooling towers are reviewed to ensure efficient operation. - Irrigation and landscape water use: Outdoor water use is assessed for efficiency, including the use of WaterSense-labeled irrigation controllers and weather-based scheduling where applicable. - Leak detection and management: Evidence that the facility has a proactive leak detection and repair program in place, including review of metering data for anomalies. - Operational practices: Documentation of water management planning, staff training, and best management practices aligned with EPA's WaterSense at Work guidelines.

Third-party verifiers assess submitted documentation and may conduct on-site inspections to confirm that reported data and installed equipment match actual conditions. The EPA reviews the verifier's findings before awarding the label.

WaterSense is the dominant water efficiency label for commercial buildings in the United States, operating as a voluntary partnership program under the EPA since 2006. While it is widely recognized in the U.S. sustainability and facilities management community, it remains primarily a domestic program with limited international recognition compared to multi-dimensional green building certifications like LEED or BREEAM. The program has certified hundreds of commercial and institutional buildings across the country, though the total number of labeled commercial buildings remains modest relative to the broader commercial building stock.

WaterSense's strongest competition in the commercial building space comes from LEED for Operations and Maintenance (LEED O+M) and ENERGY STAR for Commercial Buildings, both of which address water efficiency as one component of a broader sustainability framework. Many facilities pursue WaterSense as a standalone, lower-cost complement to these programs, or as a stepping stone toward more comprehensive certification. ENERGY STAR is arguably the more widely adopted EPA-backed building label, with tens of thousands of certified buildings, giving WaterSense a smaller but more water-focused niche.

Demand for water efficiency certification is growing, driven by increasing water scarcity concerns, rising utility costs, and ESG reporting requirements from investors and corporate sustainability frameworks. Municipalities and water utilities in drought-prone regions (particularly the Southwest and Southeast U.S.) increasingly incentivize or require WaterSense compliance, which is expanding the program's relevance. The EPA's free tools, resources, and zero-cost certification pathway make WaterSense particularly attractive to public institutions, school districts, and municipalities operating under budget constraints.

The WaterSense program was launched by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2006, modeled in part on the success of the EPA's ENERGY STAR program, which had demonstrated that voluntary, label-based efficiency programs could drive significant market transformation. WaterSense was created in response to growing concerns about water scarcity, aging water infrastructure, and the rising cost of water and wastewater treatment across the United States. The program initially focused on labeling water-efficient products (such as toilets and faucets) before expanding to include new homes and, subsequently, commercial and institutional buildings.

The commercial buildings component of WaterSense developed as the EPA recognized that commercial and institutional facilities account for a disproportionately large share of public water supply use in the U.S. Over the years, the EPA has published building-type-specific specifications and the comprehensive "WaterSense at Work" best management practices guide to support facility managers. By the early 2020s, WaterSense had cumulatively helped save hundreds of billions of gallons of water and billions of dollars in water and energy costs across all program categories. The program continues to expand its specifications, tools, and partnerships with water utilities, building industry associations, and local governments.