May 30, 2005—US drinking water and wastewater plants are joining a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) initiative to increase their energy efficiency and reduce municipalities’ electric bills, the EPA says.
Over the next year, with participation by more than 20 organizations, the new Energy Star Industrial Water and Wastewater Focus will develop an energy performance rating system, a guide to assessing energy efficiency opportunities, strategies for superior energy management, and innovative approaches to financing energy efficiency projects.
The EPA says that drinking water and wastewater systems spend about $4 billion a year on energy to pump, treat, deliver, collect, and clean water. The energy costs to run drinking water and wastewater systems can represent as much as one-third of a municipality’s energy bill.
If drinking water and wastewater systems reduce energy use by just 10 percent through cost-effective investments in energy efficiency, collectively they would save about $400 million and 5 billion kWh annually, according to EPA estimates.
