FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 26, 2024
City of Charlottesville receives its tenth Environmental Protection Agency WaterSense Award in Sustained Excellence for helping the Charlottesville community save water and money!
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA.—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognized the City of Charlottesville with a WaterSense Sustained Excellence Award. WaterSense honored its Sustained Excellence, Partner of the Year, and Excellence Award winners during the WaterSmart Innovations (WSI) Conference in Las Vegas today. Charlottesville was one of 19 national Sustained Excellence Award winners.
WaterSense, a voluntary partnership program sponsored by the EPA, is both a label for water-efficient products and an outreach resource for helping consumers learn ways to save water. More than 2,100 manufacturers, builders, retailers, utilities, government, and nonprofit organizations partner with WaterSense to produce and promote water-efficient products, programs, and homes.
“More than ever, consumers and businesses are looking to conserve resources, cut costs, and reduce their carbon footprint,” said Veronica Blette, Acting Associate Director of the Water Infrastructure Division in the EPA Office of Wastewater Management. “Our WaterSense Award winners for 2024 made it easy for Americans to make water-efficient choices and find WaterSense labeled products and homes that save water, energy, and money while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
Since EPA launched the program in 2006, nearly 46,000 WaterSense labeled models of plumbing and irrigation products have helped consumers and businesses save 8.7 trillion gallons of water; the amount of energy needed to pump, treat, and heat water by 997 billion kilowatt hours; and $207 billion in water and energy bills. These savings also helped prevent 379 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, which is equivalent to planting 6.3 billion trees.
WaterSense recognized the City of Charlottesville as a Sustained Excellence Award winner for a seventh year in a row and 10th year of receiving a WaterSense Award. Highlighted programs and community engagement efforts by Charlottesville’s Water Conservation Program in 2023 include:
- Development of new television and digital commercials (LINK) featuring three charismatic water characters singing about the woes of wasting water.
- Numerous partnerships with Charlottesville community partners including Rivanna Conservation Alliance, Rivanna Stormwater Education Partnership, Master Gardeners, and James River Association to bring inclusive water conservation outreach and education to the community.
- Development of tailored water-saving curriculum for Charlottesville City Schools to help educate the next generation on water conservation.
“The Charlottesville Water Conservation Program enjoyed a very collaborative year working with community partners to support the community’s water saving efforts,” said Jill Greiner, Water Efficiency Program Coordinator in the City of Charlottesville’s Office of Sustainability. “These partners along with the WaterSense program were instrumental in the continual success of the community to save water. We look forward to continuing our work with the community and ensuring we are supporting each person in Charlottesville.”
For more information about WaterSense, visit www.epa.gov/watersense.
For more information about the Charlottesville Water Conservation Program, visit www.charlottesville.gov/waterconservation.
Media Contact
Jill Greiner
Water Efficiency Program Coordinator
City of Charlottesville
434-970-3877
greinerj@charlottesville.gov
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WaterSense, a partnership program sponsored by the EPA, seeks to protect the future of our nation's water supply by offering consumers and businesses simple ways to use less water with water-efficient products, homes, and services.