AWWA SOURCES59257

Water conservation for many commercial or industrial end-users is often only one part of a more comprehensive environmental management program. Reducing water use may be a byproduct or effect of reducing solid or liquid waste streams, reducing stormwater impacts, or improving energy use and economic performance. For municipal conservation programs, a better understanding of the interrelationship between water conservation, water quality, and stormwater protection provides a potential for multiple benefits from environmental improvements. An understanding of how these interrelationships affect industrial and commercial end-users can facilitate program design. Providing incentives to stimulate greater investment in water conservation has been a popular program alternative for some of the larger water conservation programs in the United States over the past two decades. Recognizing that water conservation's economic and environmental benefits are only one part of the potential environmental benefits available to a multifaceted program may provide additional incentives to industrial commercial end users. As a case study, the professional car wash industry's involvement in two related but distinct programs will be examined: municipal certification programs and the US Environmental Protection Agency's (USEPA) Performance Track Program. In 1996, the San Antonio Water System initiated the Vehicle Wash Conservation Certification Program for professional car washes. In 2002, the City of Denver Water Utilities provided certification for water-conserving car washes as a stimulus to reduce water use both during a drought. In 2003, the International Carwash Association began discussions with the EPA to become the network partner in the EPA's Performance Track program. Performance Track uses Environmental Management Systems to track and continuously improve environmental performance in a number of related areas. For car washes, this environmental performance would include effluent quality, solid waste disposal, and chemical safety, as well as water conservation. This paper uses the professional car wash experience to show how the goals of water conservation, pollution prevention, and chemical safety interact in one industry. The differences between a focus on water conservation and a multifaceted focus on environmental management are examined. A comparison of emphasis and potential impacts of conservation certification and Performance Track program designs is included. Includes 6 references.