The Water Petal

The Water Petal is a big deal and, for us, the first real challenge to existing thinking so far. 

According to the Living Building Challenge 2.0:

"The intent of the Water Petal is to realign how people use water and redefine ‘waste’ in the built environment, so that water is respected as a precious resource. Scarcity of potable water is quickly becoming a serious issue as many countries around the world face severe shortages and compromised water quality. Even regions that have avoided the majority of these problems to date due to a historical presence of abundant fresh water are at risk: the impacts of climate change, highly unsustainable water use patterns, and the continued drawdown of major aquifers portent significant problems ahead."

The Water Petal:

• Net-Zero Water = One hundred percent of occupants’ water use must come from captured precipitation or closed loop water systems that account for downstream ecosystem impacts and that are appropriately purified without the use of chemicals.
  
  
• Ecological Water Flow =  One hundred percent of storm water and building water discharge must be managed onsite to feed the project’s internal water demands or released onto adjacent sites for management through acceptable natural time-scale surface flow, groundwater recharge, agricultural use or adjacent building needs.

I'll let you think about exactly what that means for now. We will be complying with this petal 100% and are extremely excited about doing so. Stay Tuned. The Energy Petal is next.

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