The word "sustainable", for any environment, whether it is a biological system or a real estate building, implies a very green sense of healthy as well as practices intended to increase longevity while reducing consumption of resources. Unlike biological systems, which essentially use a process of elimination to shape an environment, an individual building has an overseer to determine what's in the best interest of invested parties. With this system we are able to quickly clean up poor practices and processes to lower consumption while increasing productivity. An obvious example would be to replace all light bulbs in a building that last twice as long and draw less electricity. Not all practices are obvious though: take, for instance, water.
It seems logical to examine natural resources first when determining a standard practice for any building; however, this is not commonly done. Water passes through every pipe, every sink, every boiler, it goes down the drain, into fixtures, and is consumed by people. Imagine if, for short money, one could change the water quality to increase the boiler life by 5 years or more. Or by adding coolers with bacteria inhibiting technology, a company could reduce the number of sick days in its workforce. One can even recycle waste water from a reverse-osmosis system that otherwise be headed down the drain.
In the U.S., municipal water is treated. However the water is not the same everywhere, and therefore it's not treated equally. Water quality and how it affects your building, equipment, and the people in the building should be a top priority when determining sustainable practices. There are inexpensive "in house" treatments that can save money and time on a wide variety of equipment.
Water can also be an expense if it finds itself places it should not be. Leak detection and prevention can be an additional expense, however victory loves preparation. One drip over a long weekend can amount to massive damage if left unchecked. To take care of your water is to take care of one part of the living system that is your building. Just like any environment, all the parts need to function properly to offer long term health and sustainability.
Eric Jacobson is an account executive with Atlas Watersystems, Inc., Waltham, Mass. and is a monthly contributing Water Purification author for the New England Real Estate Journal's Green Building section.