Saving water through water efficiency and the Water Conservancy

The Water Conservancy has been playing a critical role in maximising water efficiency for a range of products… but the products they study are surprising.

The average consumer may not be aware of the Water Conservancy, but they play an interesting role in helping Australians use water more efficiently. Chris Philpot is the Chief Executive Officer and has focused much of his career on water efficiency and sustainable water use.

“I’ve worked in water throughout pretty much my entire career,” Philpot said. “I graduated with a degree in physical geography in 1996 from the University of Exeter. From there, I joined Yorkshire Water as a survey technician. That meant I looked at all the map records on paper and then digitised them as digital assets.”

After a few years at Yorkshire Water, Philpot moved to Australia and landed a job with Sydney Water on their graduate rotation programme. He developed a lot of experience throughout the organisation, including at the North Head Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Water efficiency becomes a passion

“This was when all the key messages in Australia were around water saving and restrictions,” he said. “Australia was deep in the first of the millennium droughts. That really kickstarted my career, with a focus on water efficiency.”

Philpot returned to the UK in the early 2000s, working with Waterwise, a non-government organisation. As the equivalent of the Water Conservancy, it sought to get the British public to save water and use it more efficiently.

“This is a big challenge when there’s a perception across the country that there is too much water in England,” he said. “It’s the opposite of the situation that Australia has regularly seen.”

Philpot returned to Australia 15 years ago. He has been working at the Water Conservancy for most of that time, previously known as the Smart Approved Watermark (SAWM). It’s a certification program that was borne out of the National Water Initiative in 2004.

“When I started with the Water Conservancy, I diversified its remit from a pure certification program to a more diverse program offering,” Philpot said. “It made sense to rebrand to the Water Conservancy at that time.”

Making a difference

The Water Conservancy has several programs that target different audiences, intending to encourage everyone to value water more and improve their water efficiency. It focuses on improving education and providing water experiences to help people waste less water.

“We work with schools, businesses, and households to choose water-efficient products,” he said. “The goal is to encourage all those groups to change their behaviour, so they are not wasting water.”

Walter Smart and Friends is a live theatre water education program designed to excite and educate primary school students. These actors deliver a set script to educate the students about the urban water cycle and the benefits of water efficiency. The program leaves primary students with a positive, can-do attitude. They are motivated to make changes to how they use water themselves. It also aims to inspire primary school students to tell their family and friends all the simple ways they, too, can use water smartly.

“Water Night is probably the biggest program in our repertoire,” said Philpot. “It’s a bit like Earth Hour, but for water. It takes place on 19 October every year, and we ask participants to withhold from using water for five hours, between 5 pm and 10 pm. It’s really designed to raise awareness of how often we use water in our homes.”

The Water Conservancy still delivers SAWM, which has been running for almost 20 years. It’s a certification program designed to highlight products and services that save water, predominantly in the outdoor space.

“We approve things like irrigation equipment, swimming pool covers, car washing equipment, mulches, soil amendment products, and anything outside the remit of the Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme,” he said. “We also operate Smart Water Solutions for businesses and Smart Water Advice for water utilities and local councils.”

SAWM and WELS

The difference between WELS and SAWM is that WELS focuses on products generally inside the house. When WELS started in 2004, there was a voluntary code that used three stars for taps, toilets, showers, washing machines, dishwashers, and similar utilities. Estimates from the Australian Government suggest that using water-efficient products could save Australian households an average of $175 per year, including reduced energy costs and water bills.

“One of the other recommendations that saw the birth of WELS was the creation of a watermark that would be used to identify products and services in the outdoor space,” said Philpot. “We’ve delivered this since 2004 in a very credible and robust manner. The Water Conservancy has an independent expert panel that reviews all the applications that come in every quarter.”

Since 2004, the expert panel has reviewed more than 1,000 applications and approved about 300. They all live on the SAWM website, even if the product no longer exists, is discontinued, or is removed from the market. Philpot explained that some may have decided to discontinue their licensing under SAWM.

“Companies need to renew their license every two years to keep using the watermark on their products,” he said. “We currently have about 85 products licensed and approved for buying with the SAWM.”

Philpot believes that the SAWM scheme has been effective. There is no other such scheme in Australia that works in tandem with WELS.

“WELS tends to focus on flow rate,” Philpot said. “There’s no such thing as a flow rate for a pool cover or mulch. They both save water, but in a different way. I believe that WELS would never be able to review a pool cover, so we’ve done a good job filling the gap.”

Water Night

Water Night is the biggest program run by the Water Conservancy. It’s also a successful program in terms of achieving its aims and objectives.

“We survey the Water Night participants before and after the event,” said Philpot. “The goal is to see how their literacy rate has changed due to Water Night. The fourth year of Water Night is October, and based on the first three years, we have seen a 25 per cent increase in water literacy among participants. We’ve also picked up an 18 per cent increase in the awareness of water use.”

The increased awareness of people using taps has seen participants reporting they use them about 10 per cent less. The Water Conservancy has also seen an increase in registrations every year and an uptake in engagement through social media.

“Having the Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water (DCCEEW) as a principal partner is fantastic,” he said. “They have supported the program again, along with several other water utilities and industry sponsors. Even those members who do not sponsor Water Night are super keen to get on board as a supporter. They like to encourage their customers to get involved.”

This is also the first year that Water Night has gone international. Waterwise in the United Kingdom has partnered with the Water Conservancy. They see the value in the program, and the partnership has been borne through a licensing agreement. Philpot is keen to see how it works in its debut year.

Water industry collaboration

Another benefit of the SAWM is its use by water authorities nationwide. It’s become a mechanism by which water utilities can identify products eligible for rebates or exemptions from water restrictions.

“For example, Sydney Water is currently running a rebate for pool covers,” said Philpot. “To qualify for the rebate, residents need to buy approved pool covers, which need to have been approved with a SAWM. Similarly, Tamworth Regional Council have offered rebates on products like swimming pool covers and tree wells. Water Corporation in Western Australia provides a rebate of up to $300 for a weather-based irrigation controller to try and save water used in the garden.”

Philpot would love to expand on their close relationship with the water industry. The Water Conservancy is already owned by the Water Services Association of Australia (WSAA) but operates under a separate brand and budget.

“We work very closely with all the WSAA members,” he said. “I’d love to get more buy-in from other businesses involved in the water industry. That’s particularly at the point of sale area. There’s a lot of value in companies that make things like toothpaste, shower gel, and washing powders. These are things that we use every day, so they could take the lead in increasing water efficiency.”

For more information, visit https://thewaterconservancy.org/