Unit 5. Net Zero Water Buildings

Compiled by Steve Burian (steve.burian@utah.edu), Manoj Jha, Gigi Richard, and Marshall Shepherd

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Initial Publication Date: July 15, 2016 | Reviewed: October 10, 2017 (see revision history: 3 events)

Summary

Unit 5 addresses the concept of Net Zero Water of buildings. Net Zero Water can be defined in different ways. For this module it means a building's water needs are supplied 100% from harvested rainwater or water that is recycled on site. Reducing indoor and outdoor water use is a key element. Reading and videos are assigned to aid students grasping the concept of Net Zero Water as applied to buildings. A spreadsheet tool from the U.S. Green Building Council is introduced and used to estimate indoor water demand for baseline and design (water conservation) scenarios. In addition, this unit links to Unit 4 by including an estimate for outdoor water demand. The central activity for the unit is an active learning team exercise to analyze indoor water use reduction for a case study building and evaluate Net Zero Water.

Environmental Geology, Hydrology, Water Quality and Quantity, ...(more) | College Upper (15-16)

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Topics

Environmental Geology, Hydrology, Water Quality and Quantity, Sustainability, Environmental Science, Engineering

Grade Level

College Upper (15-16)

View Standards Details »

These materials have been reviewed for their alignment with the Next Generation Science Standards as detailed below.

Overview

In this unit, students develop a plan to achieve net zero water for a campus building, evaluating data for both indoor and outdoor water use.

Science and Engineering Practices

Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking: Use mathematical, computational, and/or algorithmic representations of phenomena or design solutions to describe and/or support claims and/or explanations. HS-P5.2:

Developing and Using Models: Develop and/or use a model (including mathematical and computational) to generate data to support explanations, predict phenomena, analyze systems, and/or solve problems. HS-P2.6:

Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions: Apply scientific ideas, principles, and/or evidence to provide an explanation of phenomena and solve design problems, taking into account possible unanticipated effects. HS-P6.3:

Cross Cutting Concepts

Systems and System Models: Systems can be designed to do specific tasks. HS-C4.1:

Structure and Function: Investigating or designing new systems or structures requires a detailed examination of the properties of different materials, the structures of different components, and connections of components to reveal its function and/or solve a problem. HS-C6.1:

Cause and effect: Systems can be designed to cause a desired effect. HS-C2.3:

Disciplinary Core Ideas

Defining and Delimiting Engineering Problems: The more precisely a design task’s criteria and constraints can be defined, the more likely it is that the designed solution will be successful. Specification of constraints includes consideration of scientific principles and other relevant knowledge that are likely to limit possible solutions. MS-ETS1.A1:

Developing Possible Solutions: When evaluating solutions, it is important to take into account a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, and to consider social, cultural, and environmental impacts. HS-ETS1.B1:

Performance Expectations

Engineering Design: Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering. HS-ETS1-2:

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Learning Goals

After completing Unit 5, students will be able to:

Explain concept of Net Zero Water buildings
Calculate indoor water demand of a building
Quantify impact of conservation practices and technologies on indoor water demand
Assess potential of Net Zero Water for a building

Context for Use

Unit 5 is meant to synthesize the previous units on urban landscape and engineering concepts in an application of estimating building indoor water demand and evaluating whether a building can achieve Net Zero Water. As such, the unit requires a background explanation of the water cycle (Unit 2) and an understanding of water demand (Unit 4). The required background is fundamental; therefore, students are expected to have adequate knowledge without pre-requisite courses. The unit is meant to be delivered as a single 75-minute class session with approximately one hour of out-of-class activity. However, instructors adopting Unit 5 may wish to include an additional session on indoor water demand of buildings. The active learning team exercise is somewhat choreographed, but students are given freedom to explore. Instructors need to be familiar with the spreadsheets, data, and results to help efficiently guide students in class. Students need to be able to use a computer for this unit. Therefore, instructors will need to either require students to use their own laptops or hold class sessions in a computer lab facility.

Description and Teaching Materials

Pre-Class Activities

See Pre-Class Activity Handout (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 20kB Sep13 15)
Read "Water Conservation" by Joseph Bourg.

This reading is a comprehensive summary of building water conservation practices. It is written from the perspective of large buildings/facilities, but the information translates to other applications. Reading and comprehension time estimated to be 30 minutes.

Watch Video: U-Miami's New "Net-Zero Water" Dorm from P.W. Grosser Consulting.

This video presents the University of Miami Net Zero Water dormitory. Video run time approximately 3 minutes.

Students provide answers to questions listed in Pre-Class Questionnaire:

In your own words, explain concept of Net Zero Water for buildings (< 3 sentences).
Provide a list and one-sentence description of three best practices to help buildings achieve Net Zero Water.

In-Class Activities

(20 min) Lesson Intro and Discussion of Pre-Class Questions

a. Instructor states lesson learning goals to begin session and orients students to the topic and the lesson activities

b. Execute discussion of pre-class questions by recording student feedback on board, or in GoogleDoc for real-time sharing of responses

c.
Background information -- private instructor-only file
provided to help instructor facilitate discussion.

(10 min) Net Zero Water Activity: Part 1. Baseline Indoor Water Use Estimation

a. Student handout: Net Zero Water Activity Handout (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 23kB Sep11 16)

b. Instructor presents overview of the LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator Spreadsheet LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator (Excel 2007 macro-enabled (.xlsm) 123kB Aug26 16)

1. Instructor resource provided to help explain activity, case study, and LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator:
Instructor Guidance for Spreadsheet and Activity -- private instructor-only file

2. LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator with possible answers is provided for instructors for Part 1 and Part 2:

Part 1 - Instructor Version -- private instructor-only file
and

Part 2 - Instructor Version -- private instructor-only file

c. Students work in teams of three. Need one laptop per team, and preferably each student has laptop/computer and works on their own LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator.

d. Student teams complete Part 1 of activity as instructed in the handout. Instructor may modify activity to use a local example.

e. Student teams report Part 1 results to instructor/class and instructor displays answers and reviews LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator spreadsheet to help students confirm their results.

(10 min) Net Zero Water Activity: Part 2. Reducing Indoor Water Use

a. Instructor guides students to complete Tables 3 and 5 from LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator spreadsheet to estimate the water savings from conservation practices.

b. Student teams select and enter their choices into the LEED Indoor Water Use Reduction Calculator following instructions in activity handout.

c. Student teams report results.

d. Instructor may wish to bring policy into the discussion by highlighting local or national standards for low flow water fixtures: Water-Efficient Plumbing Fixtures from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)].

(15 min) Net Zero Water Activity - Part 3: Evaluate Plan for Net Zero Water

a. Instructor reviews the Net Zero Water Check spreadsheet of the activity: Net Zero Water Check spreadsheet (Excel 2007 (.xlsx) 14kB Sep13 15)

b. Instructor should note that Outdoor Water Use is inserted already into the Net Zero Water Check spreadsheet. These values may be provided by the instructor from Unit 4, if the CME building is used for the case study in that unit. Instructors may also elect to have students apply the spreadsheet again, but this time to estimate outdoor water use for the CME building. Outdoor spreadsheets are provided for instructor use:

Outdoor Water Use Spreadsheet - Blank (Excel 2007 (.xlsx) 12kB Apr9 16)

Outdoor Water Use Spreadsheet - Completed for CME -- private instructor-only file

c. Student teams insert their annual indoor water use values for baseline and design scenarios.

d. Student teams evaluate the potential for the CME building case study to achieve Net Zero Water (teams should check their water budget — total the monthly differences).

e. Students report back to instructor. Instructor shares answers:
Net Zero Water Check spreadsheet answer key -- private instructor-only file

(18 min) Discussion

a. Individually, students are instructed to reflect on the exercise and record answers to the following:

1. Describe how to further improve the potential for Net Zero Water. Students might note graywater reuse, composting toilets, changing behaviors, etc.

2. Which months create a problem for Net Zero Water for this building?

3. Do you have a water surplus at any time to use for outdoor watering during the growing season? Would you need water storage?

4. If the CME building were in Atlanta, Georgia, how would the evaluation of Net Zero Water change? (students should refer back to Unit 3 and the discussion of urban climate)

(2 min) One-Minute Paper

a. Circulate the Minute Paper (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 21kB Jul4 16) and ask for students to complete.

b. Instructor may summarize lesson briefly and point to learning goals, if time permits.

Teaching Notes and Tips

Unit 5 can be adapted by replacing the CME Building Example with a local example
An important part of Unit 5 is the potential to expand into more depth. For example, in a water resources engineering course follow-on units might go into more depth on the topics of water conservation, technologies, etc.

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Assessment

Unit 5 assessment is entirely internal to the class session. Techniques used are questioning, checking of answers to pre-class questionnaire, checking of student spreadsheets, and the minute paper.

References and Resources

EPA Best Practices for Water Management
Living Building Challenge
PDF Report on Water Independent Buildings (Acrobat (PDF) 1.3MB Sep13 15) by Central City Concern (March 2009)

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Unit 5. Net Zero Water Buildings

Summary

Learning Goals

Context for Use

Description and Teaching Materials

Pre-Class Activities

In-Class Activities

Teaching Notes and Tips

Assessment

References and Resources

Teaching Themes

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