Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Water Conservation—Urinals to Irrigation

Dale Schielke, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is one of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) national laboratories, managed by DOE’s Office of Science. PNNL scientists conduct basic and applied research and development to strengthen U.S. scientific foundations for fundamental research and innovation; prevent and counter acts of terrorism through applied research in information analysis, cyber security, and the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction; increase the U.S. energy capacity and reduce dependence on imported oil; and reduce the effects of human activity on the environment. These missions are carried out in ways that enable the long-term continuity and viability of PNNL and the economic, social, and environmental systems in which it operates. PNNL has been operated by Battelle since 1965.

PNNL is implementing numerous measures in environmental, energy, and economic performance, meeting federal goals set in October 2009, when President Obama signed an Executive Order that sets sustainability goals for federal agencies. PNNL has initiated numerous water conservation measures in an attempt to reduce consumption intensity. This poster session will highlight some of the measures that have been implemented throughout the research campus facilities. These include:

  • The use of high efficiency urinals (HEU) that save 85 percent with one pint per flush over conventional one gallon per flush urinals and why they were selected over waterless urinals.
  • The conversion of an irrigation system from potable water to the reuse of waste grey water that will save about 6 million gallons of potable water annually.
  • The conversion of non-contact potable water used for cooling laboratory equipment to a process chilled water cooling loop.

Biography:

Dale Schielke works as a building engineer in the Energy Program Office at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, Washington. He is a graduate of Clemson University and has his professional license in mechanical engineering. For more than 35 years, Mr. Schielke has been in the Facilities and Operations organization at PNNL assisting with plant engineering activities plus various water and energy conservation measures. Recently, he has been involved with a number of water reduction projects that will help meet the laboratories' water reduction goals.