Potable water is a real commodity these days. Although more than 70% of the earth’s surface is covered with water, only about 2.5% actually is suitable for human consumption. A renewable resource, fresh water restores itself solely through evaporation and precipitation. And as drought spreads across the globe — from the southwestern U.S. to India and the Middle East — the focus turns toward preservation.
And yet water conservation is nothing new. The first federal legislation on the topic dates back to the 1992 U.S. Energy Policy Act — still the national standard for plumbing fixtures today — that cut the traditional 3.5 gpf down to 1.6 gpf. States such as California recently have set higher efficiency standards, mandating that all faucets installed not exceed 1.2 gpm flow and toilets not exceed 1.28 gpf.