WaterSense

WaterSense, is a partnership program by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that helps protect our nation's water supply by suggesting simple ways to reduce water usage with water-efficient products and services.

With the irrigation season just around the corner, it is time to start your Spring-cleaning and check your irrigation system before you start watering.  Sprinkler heads may have been damaged from winter weather and one broken or leaking sprinkler head can waste up to 25,000 gallons of water in just six months.  Sprinkler Spruce-Up is a WaterSense program that recommends four simple steps of inspect, connect, direct, and select to make your irrigation system more efficient.  It is also a good idea to check your sprinkler heads throughout the irrigation season as they can get damaged from lawn mowers as well. Watch the video below to learn more about the sprinkler spruce up program.

The WaterSense website also has great resources for ways to be more efficient by saving water, energy, and money.  Look for the WaterSense label on water efficient products. This label can be found on weather-based irrigation controllers and more! Click here, to learn about the WaterSense label. 

Where's the Sense in that?

Water conservation is an issue you have likely heard, read, or even talked about as it is a topic that exists at a global level. Water is used in a myriad of ways that affect us all on an individual level, the city we live in on a local level, and on a much bigger global scale.

Landscaping and lawn care is an industry that accounts for a staggering amount of water consumption, "Nationwide, landscape irrigation is estimated to account for nearly one-third of all residential water use, totaling nearly 9 billion gallons per day" (https://www3.epa.gov). We can help conserve water resources by learning how much water we use and how we can use that water in more sustainable ways, particularly in regards to lawn care. Inefficient water use in land care causes more harm to soil quality and the environment in many ways. Understanding proper lawn care techniques and practices is one the best steps we can take to become proactive in taking care of the land we live on.

WaterSense is a program the EPA began in 2006 and has "helped consumers save a cumulative 1.1 trillion gallons of water and more than $21.7 billion in water and energy bills." Their website has a host of tools you can use to see how much you know, calculate your use, learn how to take care of you lawn sustainably, and much more access. Though the WaterSense program, you can find certified contractors that are trained in sustainable water practices and can help you find ways to reduce water use and improve the health of your lawn. Check out their website for more information and access.