According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Americans use more water flushing toilets than they do with any other daily activity. Compared to Europe, America was late to hop on high-efficiency plumbing fixtures – but that high-toilet-flush stat is likely true for most developed nations. Middle Eastern bathrooms are fast adopting western-style fixtures, including a predilection for EU-style bidets.  Water waste is rising in this region that can least afford it, despite record rains in Jordan and elsewhere – so listen up desert nations: this brick shtick will work for us too.

The Indigogo campaign is a lighthearted way to convey a serious message, and given the myriad other puns the founders could have played with, the mild poop joke seems a wise choice. Project Drop-A-Brick is a not-for-profit, grassroots initiative, an eco-friendly improvement on the old trick of placing a clay brick in a toilet tank to save water. The mass of the brick displaces a half-gallon or so of tank water and reduces the amount used in each flush, with little impact to toilet performance.

[youtube]http://youtu.be/937g5_u-Wko[/youtube]

Their new “brick” is made of nontoxic rubber and filled with a hydro-gel that expands when mixed with water.  It’s pliable and fits inside almost every toilet tank.  The gadget is more tank-friendly than a real clay brick and less water use means lower utility bills.

This brick costs $15, not exactly cheap but it will earn back its price tag over time. The campaign offers the usual crowd-sourcing fun stuff: you can give a brick to families that can’t afford them.  You can buy them in 3-packs (keep in mind, this is California-centric where most suburban homes come with at least three bathrooms).  There are “bag-of-bricks” deals for office buildings and motels, and the “brick wall” for bulk buyers.  Or live like a “King or Queen of Your Thrown” and give $2500 to the cause to jump-start production, run longer shifts to get Drop-A-Bricks made sooner, and spread the word.

They’re not the first to jump aboard toilets as a weapon of mass-desertification – Green Prophet recently alerted you to the pee-in-the-shower craze – but  Drop-A-Brick may prove to be a new bucket challenge. The developers figure each brick will save about 50 gallons of water a week. That’s astounding.

If you are in the U.S., check out their website and consider these as wise and wacky water-saving gifts.  If you’re out of shipping reach like me here in Jordan – go for a walk, pick up a few stones, or indeed, a real brick – and pop it in your toilet tank. Sure, it’s fine to read about conservation (likely when sitting on your “throne”) – but take it a step further with a simple action to start saving water, in significant amounts, now.

Images from Drop-a-Brick

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Abu Dhabi gives seal of approval to products with high environmental performance.

Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (QCC) launched a Water Efficient Fixtures Conformity Scheme to help consumers make better use of water in public and private plumbing applications. It certifies six categories of water fixtures based on highly efficient water flow rates: bathroom taps, shower heads, kitchen faucets, bidets, urinals, and toilets.

QCC is responsible for improving the infrastructure quality, establishing uniform performance measures and raising public awareness on environmental aspects of building components.

Did your grandma read Good Housekeeping?  A century ago, that magazine kicked off a brilliant marketing strategy; the “Good Housekeeping (GH) Seal of Approval” was its emblem.  Their seal was awarded to goods that passed muster by the magazine’s special “domestic science” research institute. Products bearing the GH seal were backed by special warranty, enjoying an instant boost in sales.

Similarly, the QCC Trustmark for Environmental Performance certifies products compliant with Abu Dhabi’s environmental and sustainability standards.

“Consumers can make a choice between an environmentally sustainable product that meets quality standards and a product that doesn’t comply,” Salem Bin Khalid Al Qassimi, senior specialist at QCC, told ConstructionWeekOnline. Products that achieve certification will be granted the right to use the Trustmark for Environmental Performance in product packaging, promotion and merchandising. Currently, the certification process is free. In future, Abu Dhabi could make it mandatory for public projects to only use certified products.

Domestic usage accounts for approximately 33% of Abu Dhabi water consumption.  The emirate has the highest per-capita water consumption rate in the world — 550 liters per day — whereas the global average is 350 liters. The idea is that heightened consumer awareness will translate into increased conservation. 

QCC is looking to launch another three “branding” schemes this year.

Al Qassimi said the QCC was working with government agencies such as Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (Estidama) and Abu Dhabi Food and Control Authority on more schemes. “We’re looking at working with paint, ensuring the paints are not only lead-free but have very low quantities of VOCs (volatile organic compounds).”

“It’s very important for hospitals and schools to use low VOC paint. This program has just started.  We’re looking at developing the pilot phase now, then have industry come in, look at the standards and see if they’re fine with it.”  He described other applications, “Abu Dhabi Food and Control Authority is also working with us to look at food contact material, the use of plastics in bottled water, for example.”

Al Qassami wants the QCC’s certification to be regionally and internationally recognized: it meets Gulf Cooperation Council standards and has potential for adoption by all other emirates.

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