Council Speaker Christine Quinn defended the legislation, saying the common design of water fountains do not meet the current needs of water conservation and consumption.
Posted on 10/14/2010 6:56:01 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
NEW YORK -- Number one, or number two?
Share 42 Comments Under a law passed by the City Council today, new toilets will have to be high water efficient or "dual-flush," which allow users to choose between a high pressure flush for solid waste, and a low-pressure flush for liquid.
The law, which significantly changes the city plumbing code starting July 2012, applies the same strict water efficiency standards to plumbing fixtures like showerheads, urinals and sink faucets.
The package of water conservation bills also requires water fountains have separate spouts for drinking and for filling water containers; commercial buildings install alarms and sub-meters to detect water leaks; and limits the use of "once-through" cooling systems, such as those used to cool ice-making machines, walk-in coolers and older medical x-ray and laser equipment.
Advocates say the bills, part of a comprehensive package aimed at making buildings more energy efficient, could save the city 60 billion gallons of water per year once most of the older equipment is replaced. But some fear the measures - which, in some cases add 50 percent to the cost of fixtures - would just throw money down the drain.
New Yorkers use approximately 126 gallons of water per capita, per day - though residential use accounts for about 70 gallons per person, per day, according to figures from the city's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
A study by the non-profit Urban Green Council estimates that simply by changing some of these commonly used fixtures could knock that down by 5-7 gallons per person, per day. More efficient cooling systems could potentially save between 150,000 and 200,000 gallons per year, it found. And changing water fountains would also encourage the use of reusable water containers, thus saving the city millions in the cost of recycling plastic bottles, the study said.
Council Minority Leader James Oddo (R-Mid-Island), who voted against the water fountain and "toilet" bill, along with colleague Vincent Ignizio (R-South Shore), said some of the measures reach too far.
"When does it stop? Does it stop when we micromanage every minute facet of our lives? I want people to drink water as much as the next guy, but to make it part of a law so that someone does not have to tilt a water container to fill it up?" Oddo said.
Ignizio also noted that New Yorkers have been paying higher water bills despite conserving water - consumption has been cut by more than 7 percent in 7 years, while water rates have nearly doubled in 10 years.
Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) defended the legislation, saying the common design of water fountains do not meet the current needs of water conservation and consumption.
"Believe it or not, it is actually not easy to take a water bottle and refill it. If you try to do it, the way the spigot works, you probably get water all over yourself, and two, you end up wasting a lot of water," Ms. Quinn said.
The water conservation laws will apply to all new construction and major renovations, or whenever a homeowner needs a Department of Buildings (DOB) permit to replace a bathroom or kitchen fixtures.
Dual flush toilets are commonly available in Europe, but do not currently comply with the city's plumbing code. According to some estimates, dual flush toilets cost about 5 percent more than others, on average. A comparison study by Urban Green Council found that dual-flush toilets result in 23-32 percent less water usage than conventional fixtures and the average water savings from replacing existing plumbing fixtures with dual-flush fixtures was 10,600 gallons per year per home.
You’re kidding me. We are running out of dihydrogen oxide. Time to move to Mars.
Sounds like a great CHOICE should individuals DECIDE its what they want.
I’m glad that simple minded have such important things to vote for while they are in office.
The trouble is, it affects those of us who have brains and can create things.
Very soon, these idiots will have to travel in armored cars to get from A to B. Because we’ll be waiting for them.
“We are running out of water”
I had a enviro-whacko co-worker actually say that to me...............We live on the Gulf of Mexico............looks pretty full to me.............now that they got the oil out of it........
Can you flush a New York liberal politician down the dual flush model ?? Will they take a Sunday copy of the NYT ??
One flush always does the job.
Ya, Baby! Ya!
There are days when I wonder if the politicians are actually this stupid or if they’re just yanking our chain. Then I look at the corruption, the tax code, the mountains of regulations, their public pronouncements, and the horrific debt they’ve strapped us with at every level and I realize that yes they really are stupid and some are just plain evil.
New Yawkers obviously like this insanity. Amazing.
There are days when I wonder if the politicians are actually this stupid or if they’re just yanking our chain. Then I look at the corruption, the tax code, the mountains of regulations, their public pronouncements, and the horrific debt they’ve strapped us with at every level and I realize that yes they really are stupid and some are just plain evil.
We are not running out of water, we are simply moving it around inefficiently. :p
Double post. It is New York, New York after all.
RE: Sounds like a great CHOICE should individuals DECIDE its what they want.
In New York City, it’s NEVER about personal choice (except when it comes to taking the life of the unborn).
We recently have another Federal mandate to SPEND $27 Million so that all street signs in the NYC area will be changed from ALL CAPS (which they are now), to upper and lower case.
Restaurants are now REQUIRED to post a grading system regarding the quality of their sanitation given by the NYC Inspections Department IN FRONT OF THEIR Restaurants.
This has caused a lot of Restaurant owners scrambling to “convince” (wink wink) inspectors to give them a better grade.
ALL THESE BURDEN TO BUSINESSES IN THE MIDST OF A RECESSION WHERE 1 in 10 people are out of work.
When someone complained to City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (Who wants to replace Mayor Bloomberg when his term is up) that we can’t have this burdensome dual flush toilet legislation in the midst of a recession, here’s her response (which should be a classic) :
“When the economy is in the toilet, toilets are the way to bring back the economy”
Simple solution: build a nuke power plant. During daytime peak use, it provides power to the city, during the evening lows, it desalinates from the Atlantic. This will give the people plenty of time to perform whatever water saving measures they individually wish to do.
In New York City, it’s NEVER about personal choice (except when it comes to taking the life of the unborn).
We recently have another Federal mandate to SPEND $27 Million so that all street signs in the NYC area will be changed from ALL CAPS (which they are now), to upper and lower case.
Restaurants are now REQUIRED to post a grading system regarding the quality of their sanitation given by the NYC Inspections Department IN FRONT OF THEIR Restaurants.
This has caused a lot of Restaurant owners scrambling to “convince” (wink wink) inspectors to give them a better grade.
ALL THESE BURDEN TO BUSINESSES IN THE MIDST OF A RECESSION WHERE 1 in 10 people are out of work.
When someone complained to City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (Who wants to replace Mayor Bloomberg when his term is up) that we can’t have this burdensome dual flush toilet legislation in the midst of a recession, here’s her response (which should be a classic) :
“When the economy is in the toilet, toilets are the way to bring back the economy”
“Can you flush a New York liberal politician down the dual flush model ?? “
That would be the number 2 flush.
A lot of this stuff is just to distract from incompetence among the “elite”.
Oh, there’s the “we know better than you because I’m too lame to figure out how to fill a green water bottle for the photo op even though I don’t drink any water other than Perrier, and would never consider using a hoi polloi water fountain in the first place...” too.
meaning that 98% of average toilet users will just LEAVE IT ON FULL FLUSH ALL THE TIME.....you morons!!!
...allow users to choose between a high pressure flush for solid waste, and a low-pressure flush for liquid.
Now for the real reason: The dual flush modes will be hooked up to police stations (or camera’s in a previous post) and will relay information on those who violate the low pressure for liquids and use the high pressure flush instead and fines will be imposed.
We live on a planet that is 70% WATER and these greenie weenies want to control it................
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.