How water is consciously used on the Blacksburg campus

From: Division of Facilities

From the creation of new buildings to landscape irrigation, sustainable practices surrounding water use are implemented at Virginia Tech in order to support practical water conservation on and off campus. Learn more about these practices and how you can get involved below. 

Regional partnership supports campus sustainability 

The Division of Facilities works closely with campus and regional partners in order to support the sustainable and conscious use of campus water. Virginia Tech is a form member of the New River Valley (NRV) Regional Water Authority. Virginia Tech and several municipalities and communities in the region, including Montgomery County where Virginia Tech’s Blacksburg campus is located, purchase water from the NRV Regional Water Authority. The water extraction, treatment, and distribution systems are managed by the water Authority. 

The New River, the largest river in southwestern Virginia, serves as the primary water source for the NRV Regional Water Authority and Virginia Tech. Covering a drainage area of 2,748 square miles, the river provides an average daily flow of over three billion gallons. Water is pumped from the river and transported approximately 3 miles to the Water Authority’s 12.4 million-gallon-per-day treatment plant on Peppers Ferry Road. After treatment, the finished water is then distributed through twin 16-inch water mains to Virginia Tech, as well as the towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg.

In 2020, the NRV Regional Water Authority undertook a major modernization of its water treatment plant, funded through a $36.9 million loan from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. The project included replacing four raw water pumps, upgrading the chemical storage facility, and constructing new filtration units, tanks, and basins. Additionally, a new administration building was built, and a new Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system was installed.

Building standards to minimize water use

All new buildings and capital renovations follow Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) guidelines for water efficiency where feasible, including installing low-flow fixtures and other water-efficient appliances. The Virginia Tech Climate Action Commitment states that all new buildings and major renovations on campus should seek a LEED Silver rating or higher. Also, there is an increased use of instantaneous water heaters to reduce water consumption from users waiting for water to warm up.

Rainwater harvesting

Harvesting and storing rainwater can reduce the use of municipal and well water. Virginia Tech uses properly designed, constructed, and maintained rainwater harvesting systems to provide supplemental water and reduce downstream management and treatment. Recently, a student Green RFP for a rainwater harvesting cistern was approved for the Hahn Horticulture Garden. The Office of Sustainability is currently working to implement this project. Once installed, the rain water collected in the cistern would replace some of the potable water typically used for maintaining plants and flowers in the garden during the growing season.

Additionally, the Innovation Campus Academic Building One hosts a 50,000-gallon rainwater cistern that collects rainwater from the roof of the building. The water collected is then used to flush the building’s toilets. 

Greywater reuse

Using greywater for landscape irrigation and toilet flushing can significantly reduce overall water use and reduce the volume of wastewater sent to septic tanks and treatment plants. Reusing greywater reduces the use of drinking-quality water for non-drinking quality needs. 

Non-potable water from the Duck Pond is used to irrigate the Virginia Tech Golf Course. Additionally, there is greywater used in a flush system to wash down the Milking Barn at the Virginia Tech Dairy Center.

Using reclaimed water

Reusing water helps to conserve drinking water supplies by replacing the use of potable water with reclaimed water for uses such as irrigation. 

Using reclaimed water for uses that do not require drinking quality water is an effective method of conserving freshwater supplies. While reclaimed water can be used for a variety of uses, the most common use is for landscape irrigation. At Virginia Tech, reclaimed water made from a combination of rainwater and condensate from HVAC equipment is used for landscaping in the rain gardens at ICTAS II and the Visitor & Undergraduate Admissions Center. 

Learn more

The Virginia Tech Office of Sustainability has four student intern teams which all work to promote sustainable behavior changes in different topical areas: energy, water, waste, and food. The water team specifically focuses on water-related behavior change through educational tabling, events, and partnerships with members of the university and the towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg.

Students, employees, and community members can learn more about conscious water usage  at Virginia Tech by attending an event hosted by the Office of Sustainability or the Site & Infrastructure Development team. Recent events have featured a meeting at the Blacksburg Library to learn about efforts to raise awareness surrounding the health of Stroubles Creek, and a table at Blacksburg’s annual Steppin’ Out event where members of the stormwater team educated the community on the local watershed and methods to prevent pollution in waterways. 

To get involved in future events, follow @vtsustainable and @vtfacilities on Instagram, or email sustainability@vt.edu.