Equity Impact Assessment Tool: A Decision-Making Tool for Water Efficiency and Conservation Practitioners

Background

Water utilities and conservation practitioners increasingly recognize that equitable access to water services, programs, and resources is essential to achieving long-term conservation goals and building resilient communities. However, racial, economic, and geographic disparities continue to shape who has access to safe, affordable water and who benefits from water efficiency and conservation investments.

Recognizing this challenge, Alliance for Water Efficiency members identified the need for a practical Equity Impact Assessment resource specifically tailored to the water efficiency and conservation sector.

What is an Equity Impact Assessment? An Equity Impact Assessment (EIA) is a structured decision-making tool designed to help organizations identify how proposed and active policies, programs, and decisions may affect different racial or ethnic populations, and implement measures that both reduce potential harm and maximize community benefits.

About the Tool

The Equity Impact Assessment Tool provides a set of guiding questions and an actionable framework for water conservation and efficiency practitioners to use in their existing planning and decision-making processes. It is intended for water utilities, government agencies, municipalities, and other organizations involved in designing, implementing, and evaluating water efficiency and conservation programs and policies.

Download and complete the EIA tool as an online fillable PDF or print a physical copy.

Users may use the EIA Tool to:

• Build organizational and leadership buy-in
• Strengthen community buy-in, trust, and repair relationships
• Expand program and policy reach and accessibility
• Guide the development and evaluation of programs, policies, and initiatives
• Increase transparency in decision-making processes

By incorporating equity considerations into routine decision-making and program design, water utilities and municipalities can expand access to conservation resources, build public buy-in, increase education, enhance participation, and improve compliance in programs and policies. Together, these outcomes help support water savings goals and long-term water supply resilience.

Please do not directly share or post the Equity Impact Assessment Tool online. Instead, please direct others here to request the report. This allows AWE to track who is downloading the EIA Tool. Thank you for your understanding.

AWE recognizes that an Equity Impact Assessment is the first step in creating more equitable decision-making processes: this work is iterative and takes time. This tool will continue to be revised, updated, and expanded upon as the needs of AWE members and member communities change and evolve.

To request a copy of the tool, please fill out the following form: