Parcel‐level model of water and energy end use: Effects of indoor water conservation

Abstract

This article presents a parcel‐level methodology to estimate the water and energy savings associated with indoor water conservation best management practices (BMPs). By estimating fixture water savings at the parcel level for 64 public‐supply land use sectors, this approach facilitates targeting customers for water conservation by calculating their net benefits for each end use (savings in charges for water, wastewater, and energy, minus cost of water conservation BMPs). The inclusion of energy savings, primarily through reduced hot water use, is shown to be a significant benefit. The modeled end uses are male‐only toilets, mixed‐use toilets, urinals, faucets, showerheads, clothes washers, and prerinse spray valves. This article concludes with a simplified optimization formulation that determines the best fixture choice for every end‐use device so that net benefits at the parcel level are maximized. These individual fixture results are then aggregated to the parcel or any desired aggregate scale (e.g., utility).