The International Code Council (ICC) joins organizations worldwide in recognizing World Water Day by promoting initiatives that improve access to clean and plentiful water for all. This year’s theme is “Leaving no one behind,” a goal that the Code Council advances through its commitment to developing modern codes and standards that make water systems more efficient and sustainable and help ensure that clean, safe water is available in all homes and buildings.

Accessing clean water is still a challenge for many populations around the world. As of 2019:

• 1 billion people live without safe water at home.
• One in four primary schools around the world have no drinking water service, with students using unprotected sources or going thirsty.
• Around 4 billion people – nearly two-thirds of the world’s population – experience severe water scarcity during at least one month of the year.
• Intense water scarcity could displace 700 million people worldwide by 2030. (Source: WorldWaterDay.org)

The Code Council works to advance technologies to make water systems more efficient and helps to build a well-trained workforce of code officials and plumbing professionals to maintain these systems. The International Codes are a family of fifteen coordinated building codes developed by the Code Council and used throughout work that ensure safe plumbing systems in both residential and commercials buildings.

“On World Water Day and every day, the Code Council works to ensure that people around the globe have access to safe water,” said Code Council Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims, CBO. “Our modern building, plumbing and green codes help guard clean water for future generations through proper construction, conservation and safe disposal.”

The Code Council underscores its commitment to promoting water safety and conservation in a variety of ways throughout the year, including:

• The Code Council will be holding a roundtable – Mitigating Water Leaks in Premise Plumbing Systems – at this year’s Committee Action Hearings on April 27. The Code Council, alongside plumbing and other building safety professionals, will focus on identifying solutions to preventing water leaks in premise plumbing systems, an urgent issue as over 80 percent of the wastewater generated by society flows back into the environment without being treated.
• The Code Council is hosting Global Connections Day on October 23, 2019, in Las Vegas in conjunction with its annual conference. The theme is Water: Safety, Efficiency and Conservation. Presentations will include discussions of innovative yet practical approaches to water safety, various methods and policies to address water conservation drawn from multiple countries, and new technologies and programs to achieve water efficiency.
• The Code Council has dedicated Week 3 (May 13-19, 2019) of Building Safety Month to Securing Clean, Abundant Water for All Communities.
• The first-edition of the Rainwater Harvesting Standard, released this month by the Code Council and CSA Group, addresses roof surface rainwater and stormwater (i.e., rainwater that has come in contact with the ground or a green roof) being used as source water.
• The Code Council offers training courses on 2018 IPC Nonpotable Water System Provisions, the Rainwater Harvesting Standard, and 2018 IPC Backflow Prevention and Cross Connection Control Requirements.
• In recognition and furtherance of World Water Day 2019, the Code Council is calling on the U.S. Congress to require WaterSense performance measures in infrastructure investment. WaterSense is a voluntary public-private partnership through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that promotes fixtures and appliances that boost water efficiency by at least 20 percent. Through 2017, WaterSense has helped Americans save a cumulative 2.7 trillion gallons of water and more than $63.8 billion in water and energy bills. ICC Evaluation Service, a member of the ICC Family of Companies, certifies product compliance to WaterSense performance criteria at no cost, in recognition of the importance of conserving water.

Individuals can download the Code Council's water infographic, “Everyone Needs Water,” as a PDF or JPEG, and visit www.iccsafe.org/water for more information.