In general, buildings in our country usually get clean water from PDAM (the municipal water system), and this clean water have a quality standard that is not equal (below) to EPA's drinking water quality standard (we simply can't drink water straight from the tap).
For drinking water, our people usually have to buy bottled drinking water or sometimes must boil PDAM's clean water first before they can drink the water). In some cases, people still complain about the clean water they got (e.g. iron odor, etc.). From your perspective, do you think our so-called clean water can be categorized into nonpotable water by the LEED reviewers?
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Amy Rider
Sustainability ManagerKEMA Services
161 thumbs up
November 18, 2013 - 11:50 am
Hi Yasir,
I think you have a good case for claiming your "so-called clean water" as non-potable for GBCI purposes under their definition of, "Water that is unsafe or unpalatable to drink", however I am unclear how this helps your project. Before making the declaration that all of your project uses nonpotable water I suggest you review the credit impacts carefully.
Adi Negara, LEED AP BD+C
Green Building FacilitatorPT. Indonesia Environment Consultant
30 thumbs up
November 19, 2013 - 3:49 am
Thanks for the reply Amy,
I'm just wondering if it'd be approved as nonpotable water by the GBCI, because all I see is that the nonpotable water considered by GBCI is either rainwater, graywater, cooling system condensate, or municipal treated wastewater, not from the municipal water system itself. And yes, if we could claim this as nonpotable water, we intend to use that as proof that we could reduce the potable water use for sewage by 100%.
Amy Rider
Sustainability ManagerKEMA Services
161 thumbs up
November 21, 2013 - 12:48 pm
Yasir,
I would be surprised if claiming nonpotable water as your supply water earns you extra credits. Even though no potable water would be used for sewage conveyance you haven't technically reduced/eliminated it. This claim may instead render you ineligible for the indoor water credits.
Does anyone else have experience with this?
Adi Negara, LEED AP BD+C
Green Building FacilitatorPT. Indonesia Environment Consultant
30 thumbs up
November 24, 2013 - 9:31 pm
Amy,
That's why I asked this question in the first place, whether GBCI accept municipal water as nonpotable water and whether a project can get extra point for this credit, as I also thought that this approach might not considered technically reduce/eliminate potable water use by GBCI.
I just thought that with so many international project and each country have a variety of municipal water system running or drinking water quality level. Maybe it's better that later, GBCI have an alternative definition of potable water. But, it's just an opinion though.