California OKs strict water standards for showerheads

If you don’t want to wait until next year to buy a low-flow shower head, about a third of those available now meet the 2.0 gallons per minute rate.

The move comes after energy regulators approved similarly-tough standards for urinals, toilets, and faucets in April.

The commission adopted new standards for faucets and toilets in April, shortly after Gov. Jerry Brown issued an executive order demanding efficiencies in water usage across the state, including lower-flow appliances and a broad 25 percent cut in urban water use. The standards are expected to save more than 2.4 billion gallons of water in the first year and 38 billion gallons after full stock turnover in 10 years. “We are hoping for the best, but planning for the worst in the face of the state’s historic drought”.

The current standard in California for showerheads is 2.5 gallons per minute. Standards adopted today require that all showerheads not exceed 2.0 gallons per minute maximum flow rate.

The turf rebate program is estimated to benefit more than 10,000 homes, with a focus on disadvantaged communities hardest hit by the drought.

DWR will oversee the two rebate programs, which provide a $100 consumer rebate to replace one old toilet per household and up to $2 per square foot for lawn replacement. (Bare earth areas with no sign of turf are not eligible for a rebate.).

Californians can visit www.SaveOurWaterRebates.com to apply for the rebates.

That program also offered residents $2 per square foot and was initially unlimited until the district’s board set limits, such as a $6,000 cap on residential rebates, in late May.

Half of the program’s funds will be earmarked until October. 1 for disadvantaged communities, in which the annual median household income is less than 80% of the state’s median household income, officials said.

The state has also announced a $30 million rebate program to replace old toilets and lawns.

If a local water supplier is already offering a rebate of less than $2 per square foot, the state will supplement the remainder up to $2.