Pilot project: Water conservation, community project

We fund pilot projects of retrofit initiatives that have the potential to reduce potable water use by at least 20% in a neighbourhood, facility or group of facilities. This funding helps Canadian cities and communities of all sizes promote water conservation.

Pilot projects assess solutions in real-life conditions. They evaluate either a small-scale version of a project or a full-scale, replicable version. 

This funding is for retrofit initiatives only. Your pilot project may compare several options or assess one option’s ability to reduce potable water use by at least 20% in a neighbourhood, facility or group of facilities. We do not fund the purchase, installation, replacement or repair of water mains as a stand-alone initiative. We will fund those activities if they are part of a broader, more innovative initiative.

We fund pilot projects that examine either the financial performance of environmentally proven initiatives, or the financial or environmental performance of a new initiative.Your pilot project should also assess the initiative’s social benefits (e.g., better health for local residents, job creation, youth engagement, whether people will use it).

Examples of plans you might develop:

• Grey water systems
• Rainwater collection and reuse

Target

Reduce residential potable water use by at least 20%. The baseline for neighbourhoods is the average consumption over the previous three years (m³) on a per capita basis. For a facility or group of facilities, the baseline is the average overall consumption in the past three years.

What we’re looking to fund

FCM funds pilot projects that demonstrate most of the following characteristics:

• Transformative potential: The pilot project test solutions (e.g., knowledge, practices, technologies) that are beyond business-as-usual. The pilot project:
  • Is likely to result in a project that demonstrates significant performance improvements (e.g., improved levels of service, cost savings, energy efficiency, increased resiliency, environmental protection, improved human health)
  • Is audacious in that it requires a municipality to take on uncertainty over known best practices to achieve greater environmental benefits
  • Is designed to build the capacity of key stakeholders (e.g., municipal staff, elected officials, local trades)
  • Has the potential to generate new knowledge for the sector
  • Has a high likelihood of being replicated if successful

• Significant impacts: The project has the potential, at full scale, to generate significant measurable environmental results as well as economic and social benefits.
• Strong implementation framework: The project plan is robust and includes appropriate stakeholder engagement, planning, risk management and resourcing.

How to apply