Bathroom Manufacturers Association - Voice Of The Industry
12/11/2010 | The bathroom has a major part to play in the push for water efficiency, energy efficiency and carbon reduction. The BMA represents nearly 80 well known bathroom brands trading in the UK and its members have initiated a number of projects to advance the reduction in the bathroom's carbon footprint. Reducing water and energy consumption is as much about reducing waste by changing attitudes as it is about creating new products or restricting water use. The work of the BMA is to inform, educate and campaign for the installation of water efficient bathroom products in UK homes through product scrappage/swappage schemes. The Water Efficient Product Labelling Scheme - WEPLS Spearheading the BMA's projects is WEPLS. The award-winning scheme is web based and easily accessible at http://www.water-efficiencylabel.org.uk/. Over 1000 water saving products from over 23 suppliers are listed in the scheme's database which covers categories such as toilet suites, taps, cisterns, shower controls, baths, shower handsets and grey-water products. WEPLS allows users to compare the listed products – all of which meet the strict standards of the industry for water efficiency. Users can look for their dream bathroom, create a shopping list and then search for their local stockist, on line, in the full knowledge that they will be choosing bathroom products with the best possible eco-credentials. Downloadable fact sheets and technical details and an on-line water consumption calculator at www.thewatercalculator.org.uk/ enhance the scheme's usability. Links to manufacturers' websites, scheme partners and government sites add to the knowledge base which the website creates. The key to the scheme is the product label itself . Manufacturers have started applying these easy-to-understand product labels which are roughly based on the familiar energy labels found on white goods. The label shows quite clearly the volume of water that the product will consume if installed according to the manufacturer's instructions by a competent installer. Energy efficiency Saving water in the bathroom also saves energy. A reduction in the overall amount of water used in the home will save the water supplier's energy requirements to filter and clean it, transport into the home and to remove it after its use in the form of waste. At an individual's level saving hot water will reduce the householder's carbon footprint and fuel bills. The very latest taps and shower products use clever technology to automatically regulate hot water requirements, saving energy as they do. Toilet scrappage/swappage to reduce carbon footprint Latest research, specially commissioned by the BMA, shows that of the 27million households in the UK, almost 9million (a staggering 33%) have toilets installed which can be described as "inefficient" - flushing with 7.5 litres or more. Modern push-button WCs flush with an average of just 3 litres. The BMA is campaigning hard to initiate schemes which will effectively swap the existing old and inefficient WCs with the very latest low volume models. Potential daily water savings of 427.7million litres have been estimated and this represents a potential carbon saving of 319.6tCO2 per day. Clearly a 100% uptake is unrealistic and would impossible to achieve but this does give an idea of the potential scale of the carbon savings – equivalent to taking 45,000 cars off the road. Further Information For further information please email info@bathroom-association.org.uk or telephone 01782 747123 and visit www.bathroom-association.org