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Part C of the Framework
for Sustainable Development on the Government Estate (Framework),
published in July 2002, covers monitoring and management of water services,
specifically using the Watermark
project. Watermark was established in 1999 to develop benchmarking
and management information on water consumption across the public sector,
in order to establish appropriate control systems for buildings with above-average
water usage. Central Government Departments have an annual total water
spend of more than £300 million.
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Office Estates (Target C1)
Last year, 14 Departments were members of the Watermark scheme and 16 Departments monitored and recorded their water usage.
17 Departments now take part in the Watermark project, and 17 Departments have collected data on water consumption. The three exceptions are DTI and LCD which collect and monitor their data separately, and ECGD which is exempt from this Part of the Framework because it is a minority tenant in the building it occupies.
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Office Estates (Target C2)
Over the last year eight Departments, of the 15 that have data for both 2002-03 and 2001-02, recorded a reduction in water consumption, and five Departments recorded increased usage. DWP, with the highest increase (23 per cent), has since introduced a programme of water reduction measures, including waterless urinals, leak detection processes and reduced water flow taps. Only DfID and ONS have so far met the March 2004 target of 7.7 cubic-metres (m3) per person per year that has been set for all office buildings where the Department is the sole occupier.
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Non-office Estates (Targets C3 and C4)
Five Departments have identified non-office sites with opportunities for significant water savings and have all made arrangements to provide data to Watermark (or similar schemes). Of the Departments with mixed or non-office estates, ONS is the only Department that has not identified non-office sites where there are likely to be opportunities for significant water savings.
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DTI water reduction
Over 2002-03, DTI has recorded an impressive 44 per cent reduction in water use across their estate. This is largely due to water management projects, including the installation of waterless urinals in major buildings, although it also reflects more accurate data collection.
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Departmental Data
For more detail on the how specific Departments within the UK Government are achieveing these targets, please access our Search Departmental Data section.
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