the Greywater Alliance

The Greywater Alliance

The Greywater Alliance is a group of organizations and individuals whose mission is to make reuse of greywater a critical and integral part of water conservation efforts in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.  We are currently exploring the idea of a developing a 2011 Greywater Conference to be held in the Bay Area in the fall of 2011.  If you are interested in being involved, please contact us.

Bay Area Greywater Roundtable Series

In 2010, the Greywater Alliance sponsored a five-part series of discussions and presentations for the Bay Area greywater community, including building professionals, designers, city inspectors and planners, policy makers, water district staff, and greywater advocates.  See our Roundtable Resources page for pdfs of the presentations as well as lists of the attendees. 

Greywater is...

water from your bathroom sinks, showers, tubs, and washing machines. It is not water that has come into contact with feces, either from the toilet or from washing diapers.  It is also known as graywater, grey water and gray water.

Greywater is a resource

 Greywater is an important resource as it can be safely reused for outdoor irrigation or for toilet flushing. It reduces fresh water use, saves money, and reduces flow to sewage treatment plants. Installation of greywater systems could be an up-and-coming green job market.

Barriers to greywater use

California's greywater code has recently changed, making it easier for people to install legal systems. Some local jurisdictions may try to further restrict the state code. Homeowners, policy makers, and city officials need to come together to support greywater reuse. Full adoption of the state code, or local ordinances easing permitting, can facilitate legal greywater use. Widespread education and training programs can provide the public with accurate information on how to design safe, simple, low-cost and effective systems.

Greywater in action

This year has seen a surge of interest in greywater, from the general public to the media. As water districts across the state ask residents to conserve, many turn to greywater. See a video of one.

This website includes

more information about the Alliance's goals, policy information from innovative cities and municipalities on the forefront of water conservation practices, studies on greywater, articles and news about greywater, and information about the larger environmental and social context of water issues.