A look at how Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills' water recycling solution tackles conservation
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- California is no stranger to drought. The worry about water usage is an ongoing concern for homeowners and businesses alike, but at the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills, the lush landscaping suggests they don't have a water worry at all.
"We can really plant a full tropical landscape or really whatever we want to do because we don't have to worry that we are wasting water and taking water away from others," said David Alagem, VP of technology and sustainability at Alagem Capital Group.
The reason for that peace of mind can be found in the basement of the hotel.
The Waldorf recently converted its water recapturing system to Epic Cleantec, which allows them to treat and reuse all of the hotel's shower and sink water to irrigate the landscaping throughout the property.
"It's saving us another half a million gallons of water per year, tens of thousands of dollars, but also imagine we're not using any water to water all of the green space around this hotel and it's significant," said Tod Chambers, the hotel's general manager.
While the Waldorf only uses shower and sink water for irrigation, the technology could reuse 95% of all wastewater for toilets, laundry or air conditioning. It will just take some getting to used to the idea, in spite of the visible difference between untreated and treated water.
"We have a name for it in the industry. It's the 'yuck factor.' We have literally conditioned society to think that wastewater is waste. We put waste in the name. You know water goes down the drain and we never think about it again and so there is a little bit of education that comes with getting people to accept recycled water but it's just science," said Aaron Tartakovsky, CEO of Epic Cleantec.
The Waldorf claims to have been the first hotel in L.A. County to have a gray water reuse system. The hope now is to show other high level water users that this is a practical and profitable way to make a difference.
"We're doing all we should in order to take care of our environment, but sometimes there's a savings that goes along with it so this is mutually beneficial to both entities," Chambers said.
"It's exciting. There's a huge amount of potential and candidly there's a lot of untapped potential. But all of these first projects like this one here are showing the world what is possible," Tartakovsky said.
While a water recycling system is most easily installed in new builds, Epic Cleantec is also able to retrofit properties to use the system even if it's already built.
MORE: Expansion of world's biggest water reuse system in OC now complete
