Thanks to new regulations enacted by the California Energy Commission, the state of California now has the strictest low flow showerhead laws in the entire nation. Low flow shower heads regulations that were originally put into place in 1994 on a federal level have been altered numerous times in the state of California. That is mostly due to the state entering into its fifth year of a drought. The original laws allowed for shower heads a maximum flow of 2.5 gallons per minute. Under the new regulations the allowed maximum amount of water flow per minute is now 2.0 gallons. It does not stop there though, as this number will again be reduced come 2018 to a mere 1.8 gallons of water per minute from a shower head.

These strict regulations also affect other bathroom fixtures such as toilets and faucets. Where, according to current regulation the California low flow toilet law allows for 1.28 g (or 4.8 l) of water to pass through the toilet per flush. Additionally, faucets now have a maximum flow rate of 1.2 gallons per minute, down from the previous 2.2 gallons allowed per minute. This large decrease is expected to save approximately 154 billion gallons of water over the course of the next 10 years.

Strict Regulations Means Large Benefit

According to the California Energy Commission if by 2029 the state of California has seen a complete turnover of less efficient shower heads and faucets, then these strict regulations would be expected to save not only 38 billion gallons of water, but also 1,322 gigawatt hours of electricity annually, and a total of 20.2 billion cubic feet of natural gases each and every year.

Such strict water conservation efforts come at a time that California truly needs to be concerned with their water usage, as the state enters into the fifth year of a serious drought. It is important though to recognize the value of water conservation in every state, regardless of drought status.