Including a Water Factor for ENERGY STAR Qualified Clothes Washers Tony Gregg, P.E. Water Conservation Program City of Austin

A Simple Message By including water efficiency in ENERGY STAR label, customers get a single message that a machine is efficient. A single label can provide water and energy efficiency information to customers seeking an efficient machine. Without a combined effort, water utilities will be forced to pursue a voluntary labeling effort for water efficiency, resulting in two labels for each machine.

Making ENERGY STAR Stronger Pairing water efficiency and energy efficiency make the ENERGY STAR label more potent and more valuable. Consumers are motivated by water efficiency, maybe even more than they are for energy efficiency.

Simplify Cooperative Incentive Programs Reduce confusion in regional energy and water utility programs where: –Water utilities are looking for assured water savings –Energy utilities set qualifications based solely on ENERGY STAR Currently, the two lists are not the same

Enhancing the ENERGY STAR Clothes Washer Program The CEE has included the water factor for years in their efficiency ratings. Many water utility rebate programs already rely on those ratings. Including water efficiency could bring in those utilities as new ENERGY STAR partners. Adding the water factor could encourage more water and energy utility partnerships to promote efficient machines.

The Energy of Water There are large energy costs embodied in water use. Approximately 60 percent of the electricity used by the City of Austin is to treat and pump water to its customers.

Erosion of Efficiency A number of washers have been introduced that meet ENERGY STAR specifications by increasing cold water use. An increasing percentage of ENERGY STAR machine sales have water factors over 9.5

Estimated Austin ENERGY STAR clothes washer shipments

Falling Percentage of Water Efficient ENERGY STAR Washer Sales

Promoting Efficiency EPA and DOE both promote water efficiency as part of their programs. Including a water factor in ENERGY STAR is a very logical step for both agencies.

WF Value Considerations The WF should be low enough to correspond to the water utility incentive programs likely to be offered in Based on current product and sales trends, it is likely that most water utilities will limit incentives to washers with a WF of 7.5 or less by 2007.

Conclusions DOE should include WF in ENERGY STAR in 2007 The WF should correspond to the level at which water utilities will offer incentives in 2007.