Activities
Green Builder Coalition Signs MOU with NGWA
The Green Builder® Coalition has signed a 2-year agreement with the National Ground Water Association (NGWA) on the promotion of sustainable groundwater practices through the Water Efficiency Rating Score (WERS) program.
NGWA’s mission is to advance groundwater knowledge and the success of their members through education and outreach; advocacy; cooperation and information exchange; and enhancement of professional practices.
Kevin McCray, CEO of the NGWA, said, “NGWA seeks partners to help us explain the importance of the resource and the things we each can do to use the resource wisely, including among our homes, our farms, and in industry. We are excited to partner with The Green Builder® Coalition to provide promotional assistance on the benefits of sustainable groundwater practices as a way to further water efficiency.”
“One of the big themes of the WERS Program is to utilize the water that falls on the site. For rural homeowners, this is vitally important,” said Coalition Executive Director Mike Collignon. “It makes a lot of sense for us to partner with NGWA, since both organizations have a message that is relevant to a variety of audiences, from individual well owners to municipal planners.”
The agreement calls for support of “Protect Your Groundwater Day”, as well as cross-promotion of NGWA and WERS events to members of NGWA and The Coalition. There will also be a session on WERS at National Groundwater Week, December 6-8, 2016 in Las Vegas.
Since February 2014, The Coalition has helped develop the WERS program for new and existing residential properties. It was first used in November 2015 to help a New Mexico homebuilder save significant time and money on his pursuit of a building permit. The first WERS Verifier training course was held in March 2016, with more on the way in 2016.
About National Ground Water Association
Based in Westerville, OH, NGWA is a community of groundwater professionals working together to advance groundwater knowledge and the success of our members through education and outreach; advocacy; cooperation and information exchange; and enhancement of professional practices. Their vision is to be the leading groundwater association advocating the responsible development, management, and use of water. For more, visit www.ngwa.org.
About the Water Efficiency Rating Score (WERS)
The Water Efficiency Rating Score, or WERS (www.wers.us), is a predictive, performance-based approach to residential water efficiency and water resource management. The WERS is the culmination of calculations that consider the loading from principal plumbing fixtures, clothes washers, structural waste, and outdoor water management. Potential rainwater and greywater catchment are also calculated. Applicable for both new and existing single-family and multifamily residential properties, it uses a scoring scale of zero to 100, with zero being the most desirable and 100 representing the baseline property.
Upcoming Events
wERS Sessions
The Coalition staff, or members of the WERS Development Group, will be presenting at the following conferences over the next 6+ months:
- AWWA Annual Conference – June 21 at 11:30am in Chicago, IL
- New Mexico Housing Summit – September 19-21 in Albuquerque, NM
- EEBA – September 27-29 in Frisco, TX
- WaterSmart Innovations – October 5-7 in Las Vegas, NV
- Irrigation Association – December 6-7 in Las Vegas, NV
- National Ground Water Association – December 6-8 in Las Vegas, NV
If you plan to attend any of these events, please let us know. We’d love to say Hi!
Industry Conferences
In addition to those listed above, here is a calendar of events for upcoming industry conferences.
Log on to our Facebook page and share your opinions.