SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS
Asset Classes
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Offices
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- Not applicable
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Enclosed Shopping Centres
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- Not applicable
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Open Air Retail
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Light Industrial
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- Not applicable
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Multi-Unit Residential Buildings
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Health Care Facilities
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Universal
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Focus Area
Topic
Baseline Practices
Question #
W1.0b — Water Assessment
Question
Has the water efficiency of systems managed by the owner or landlord been assessed in the past five years?
Applicability
All asset classes
Tenant occupied building – some systems managed by the owner/landlord
Answer & Scoring
- Yes – this is a baseline requirement. Complete BOMA BEST Form W1.0b
- Not Applicable – Tenant occupied building: all or no systems managed by owner/landlord
Requirements
For all building components managed by the owner or landlord, provide:
- Building and system description and review – clearly distinguish between systems that are owned vs managed vs maintained by the owner, landlord or tenant
- Water utility history (at least 12 months of continuous data, typically the previous 24-36 months of data) for each energy source
- Low- and no-cost water conservation measures, with high level costing, simple payback and anticipated savings. If no savings measures are identified, state why.
If the owner or landlord only manages for example the exterior irrigation at the building, provide the water data for these systems, as well as an assessment of the efficiency of the system. If the system was recently upgraded and no water conservation is currently feasible, state that too.
For all systems managed by the tenant, the applicant (representing the owner or landlord) is expected to outline those as well, though no water assessment is required for these systems.
Documentation
- BOMA BEST Form W1.0b
AND
- Water End-Use Report
OR
OR
- Documentation demonstrating that no systems are under the building owner/landlord’s control (e.g. lease agreement)
Suggested Lead
In-house: Facility Maintenance/Project Manager/Building Manager
Third-party: Engineering consultants
Value
- Understand a building’s environmental impact through water use data analysis
- Perform an entry-level walkthrough water assessment to define a building’s baseline water usage and largest end-uses through utility analysis
- Identify ways to reduce water consumption through low-cost water conservation measures (WCMs)
- WCMs associated with the largest end-uses can result in the largest water savings and should be prioritized when implementing WCMs
- This assessment can be performed in-house using the BOMA BEST Template provided in the How-to Manual or by a qualified third-party
- The question is applicable to spaces both inside and outside of the building.
- Engage a qualified third-party professional to provide more detailed recommendations to improve building performance, save on operational costs, and reduce a building’s overall environmental impacts
RELATED Question:
Description
The most effective water reduction strategies will focus efforts on the end uses with the highest consumption. Building operations and management teams should determine the largest end uses and consider opportunities for sub-metering significant loads, such as irrigation and cooling towers.
References
Adapted BB 3.0 Question
Best Practice 5 — Has a water assessment been conducted in the past five years?