Great Lakes Craft Brewers & Water Conservation Conference

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the Great Lakes Craft Brewers & Water Conservation Conference, where I had the honor of presenting a powerpoint on water conservation in brewpub kitchens. The conference was organized by Lucy Saunders, craft beer industry guru and author of “Cooking With Beer.”

This was the first independent conference designed to bring together craft brewers, policymakers and nonprofit organizations for education and discussion about water conservation.

Day one of the conference was held at the Pilot House in the Discovery World museum, an architectural jewel on Pier Wisconsin in Milwaukee, WI. Dick Leinenkugel, Secretary of Commerce for the State of Wisconsin, delivered the keynote address. He discussed the economic impacts of the Great Lakes Compact, projects including the Milwaukee 7 Water Council as well as other legal and economic issues regarding water conservation that will affect craft brewers.

Other presenters throughout the conference included: Bridgeport Brewing Co. (Jeff Edgerton), New Glarus Brewing Co. (Dan Carey), Odell Brewing Co. (Doug Odell), and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. (Fred Strachan).

So why is water conservation such a big deal?

Well for starters, the two hottest environmental issues affecting the world today are: global warming and water shortages. Both are extremely controversial and both are disputed. Chose what you wish to believe. Here are some major facts:

• 1 billion people in the world lack access to drinking water.
• Global water demand has tripled in the last 30 years.
• Many of the world’s great rivers are a fraction of the size they once were, and some have dried up completely.
• Earth’s lakes are vanishing at an alarming rate; the Aral Sea, for example, is less than a quarter its original size.
• Nevada’s Lake Mead is half its original capacity; a recent study concluded that there is a 50/50 chance that the lake will be gone in less than fifteen years.
• 36 states will have a water shortage by the year 2025.
• Life altering shortages are expected in at least 50 countries in the future.

Why host a water conference in the Great Lakes Region?

• 1/5 (20%) of fresh water in THE WORLD is in the Great Lakes Region
• Milwaukee is home to more than 120 water related businesses (5 of 11 largest businesses in the world)
• Milwaukee, WI is an international hub for water technology

So now you may be wondering why the Great Lakes Region — where 20% of the world’s fresh water is located — needs to be so concerned about water conservation?

• By the end of July 2009, one of the core draught areas in the U.S. included portions of the northwestern Great Lakes/Upper Mississippi Valley, especially northern Wisconsin and southern Minnesota
• Three states (Delaware: 3rd; Wisconsin: 7th; Georgia: 10th) observed July precipitation among the ten driest July values of the instrumental record (1895-2009).
• Severe (D2) drought expanded across the northern half of Wisconsin. Statewide rainfall totals there were the seventh driest on record for July, while the three-month (May-July) values were the sixth driest — in its history.

It is a no-brainer of why water conservation would be important to the beer industry. After all, 90% of beer is water. But what most people do not know is exactly how much water goes into the brewing process.

On average, it takes 5 gallons of water to brew one gallon of beer. Unfortunately, a significant percentage of the water used to brew beer is wastewater. Wastewater is one of the most significant waste products of brewery operations. Even though substantial technological improvements have been made in the past, it has been estimated that approximately 3 to 10 liters of waste effluent is generated per liter of beer produced in breweries.

Technically, breweries do NOT need to use 5 gallons of water for each gallon of beer produced. In fact, they SHOULD NOT being using that much water. There are several low-effective measures as well as many cost-effective measures that can easily be implemented with the proper tools and guidance. New technologies are emerging every minute. And often times, the pay back for investing in new technologies is almost instantaneous.

Investing in water conservation is no longer optional in today’s world. It is mandatory. But the great part about water conservation is the payback. Spending money on water meters and new technology saves money and increases the bottom line.

In the future, one can predict increases in water utility prices as well as more legislation being passed on water usage and waste. Breweries who use or waste too much water can expect to be smacked with serious fines and legal penalties.

Needless to say, the time to change is now. If you are a brewer, I highly suggest looking into water conservation measures. You may be questioning where does one start at attacking such an issue. The first place to start is contacting your local water or public utilities company. Often times they will provide you with a free audit of your water usage and waste. They should also be able to provide some suggestions of where you can make improvements.

Other great resources include breweries around the country that have already put water conservation systems into place. Many of the speakers at the Great Lakes Craft Brewers & Water Conservation Conference can offer a wealth of information about what they did to make brewery operations more efficient and environmental.

Here is a list of a few of the speakers and highlights of the topics in which they addressed:

Jeff Edgerton, Assistant Brewmaster, Bridgeport Brewing Co., Portland, OR, discussed water savings and retrofits — from rinse water reclamation to re-use of bright tanks — and how procedural changes added up to significant annual savings.

Dan Carey, co-founder and Master Brewer, and Randy Barr, New Glarus Brewing Co.,conducted tours of the Hilltop Brewery’s new wastewater treatment center, which is the first of its kind to be installed outside the Pacific Rim.

Doug Odell, co-founder and “head water guy,” Odell Brewing Co., Ft. Collins, CO, spoke about how to work with the local government – and a few innovative systems that let Odell achieve a ratio of just 3 gallons of water to brew a gallon of beer.

Fred Strachan, Supervisor, Water Process & Systems, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA, discusses water audits and equipment monitoring to track water usage throughout the brewhouse and pub operations, and how to work with your water utility.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE CONFERENCE AS WELL AS CONTACT INFORMATION FOR ANY OF THE SPEAKERS:

VISIT THE SITE –> http://www.conserve-greatlakes.com/

OR EMAIL ME –> drinkwiththewench@gmail.com