BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) is one of the world's most recognised sustainability certification systems. The BREEAM certification has evolved from a nice-to-have credential for European property owners and managers into a business necessity.
But what does water have to do with accomplishing your BREEAM certification? Water management is becoming an increasingly critical aspect of sustainability frameworks, and with the right actions, you are granted the points needed for your certification. Therefore, understanding BREEAM water criteria is essential for certification success.
Every drop counts for achieving certification points and demonstrating genuine environmental stewardship. Read on as we explain the role of water management and leak detection in accomplishing your sustainability certifications.
Smartvatten customers can earn up to 18 points for their BREEAM certification.
What is BREEAM's impact on property management?
What are the key BREEAM water requirements?
Calculate how much you could save on water
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Case VALO Properties
What are common challenges and solutions for meeting BREEAM water requirements?
The future of BREAAM and sustainability requirements
Start saving water today and achieve your BREEAM points with Smartvatten
BREEAM certification provides concrete evidence of your ESG commitments, but its significance extends beyond environmental compliance. Today, BREEAM is essential for accessing responsible investment funds and green financing.
Institutional investors and environmentally conscious tenants actively seek properties with verified sustainability credentials, with BREEAM and GRESB being among the most important.
Properties with strong BREEAM performance consistently achieve:
Improved market value and attractiveness to loyal tenants
Better financing terms as lenders view sustainability as risk mitigation
Reputation advantages through greater transparency and trust.
For property portfolios, BREEAM certification also supports broader ESG strategies.
BREEAM's assessment methodology has evolved in recent years by shifting its emphasis from purely technical installations to management and performance improvements based on usage data.
The BREEAM certification goes beyond the minimum requirements required by law.
BREEAM's water management criteria focus on measurable performance improvements through technology and operational excellence. The primary water-related assessment areas include:
WAT 01 – Water Consumption
Focuses on reducing potable water use for sanitary and other functions (using efficient fixtures, recycling, etc) in the design phase.
WAT 02 – Water Monitoring
Ensures that water metering/sub-metering is provided so consumption can be measured and managed.
WAT 03 – Water Leak Detection and/or Prevention
Encourages design measures to detect and/or prevent leaks (e.g., mains leak detection, shut-off controls) in a new build.
WAT 04 – Water Efficient Equipment
Addressing efficiency of other water-using systems beyond the sanitary fixtures, such as irrigation, cooling towers, other equipment.
Here are some of the codes used for In-Use schemes, which expand the range of issues:
WAT 01 – Water Monitoring
For existing assets, the focus is on water monitoring to manage consumption. When Smartvatten monitoring is installed on the main meter of your property, you’ll receive 4 points. When every installation or floor that’s responsible for more than 10% of the water use is equipped with a submeter and another device, and multi-tenant buildings are metered per tenanted area, another 2 points are added.
WAT 07 – Leak Detection System
For in-use assets, detecting leaks via monitoring / system alerts. Because of Smartvatten’s leak detection system, you’ll be awarded the full 4 points after a complete calendar year.
WAT 08 – Leak Prevention
Measures to prevent wastage from sanitary fittings or installations in operation.
WAT 09 – Isolation Valves
A further issue in In-Use schemes addressing isolation of water supply to limit loss.
WAT 10 – Reducing Utility-supplied Water Consumption
Encourages the use of alternative water supplies (rainwater, greywater) to reduce mains water use.
WAT 11 – Water Consumption
Records and monitors the actual annual water consumption from utility supplied water in operation.
WAT 12 – Water Recycling
Reports the annual consumption of alternative water supplies (rain, grey, reuse) in operation.
WAT 13 – Water Consumption Reporting
Credits for structured reporting of water consumption and taking action on the data. When you use the Smartvatten Water Efficiency Index as a benchmark, you automatically earn 2 points. Earn 1 extra point when you report on it internally, and another 1 point if you publish this information in an annual report.
WAT 14 – Water Strategy
A higher-level issue where a water strategy is in place driving efficiency, reduction of wastage, proactive maintenance, etc. Creating a data-driven water efficiency strategy with Smartvatten, based on leak detection data and a water savings assessment, can earn you 4 points.
In conclusion Smartvatten customers can earn up to 18 points for their BREEAM certification.
Smartvatten's monitoring system installs on existing meters without construction work. Advanced algorithms monitor main supply lines and internal building systems in real time, with minute-by-minute tracking at tenth-of-a-litre accuracy. The system alerts relevant stakeholders immediately while maintaining detailed documentation for BREEAM auditing.
Try our free Solutions Advisor to see how much your property portfolio could save on water costs.
Smartvatten customers earn 10 points for their certification with our main meter service and can earn up to 18 points out of 51. These points often prove decisive in certification level advancement.
Read more on Sustainable Water Management
Smartvatten's comprehensive water management platform addresses BREEAM water requirements through technology that maximises certification points.
However, Smartvatten's solutions do more than just help you achieve essential sustainability certifications by improving water efficiency, arming you with real-time consumption data, and enabling proactive risk mitigation.
Properties implementing comprehensive water management can achieve certification improvements from 'Very Good' to ‘Excellent' ratings.
Beyond certification points, implementing comprehensive water monitoring can help you:
Achieve average water cost savings of 20%.
Prevent costly damages with BREEAM-compliant water leak detection.
Benefit from reputation improvements that extend throughout the property lifecycle.
Differentiate their properties in competitive markets with BREEAM water performance achievements.
Show proof of environmental stewardship for tenants and investors.
Support broader sustainability reporting requirements, including CSRD compliance, with detailed consumption data and benchmarking.
These operational benefits ensure that pursuing BREEAM certification delivers immediate return on investment alongside long-term sustainability achievements.
Smartvatten’s water efficiency service helped the VALO property achieve an Excellent-level environmental certification. DU Properties, a developer of multi-use buildings, chose Smartvatten’s water monitoring service to track and analyze the VALO property’s water consumption already during the construction phase.
The office and hotel building, completed in 2020, was recognized for its long-term commitment to sustainability with a BREEAM In Use environmental certification, which also increased the property’s value. Water efficiency played a key role in achieving this certification.
Fortunately, Smartvatten's water monitoring technology has eliminated many of these traditional barriers. Today's smart water solutions can work with existing infrastructure while providing BREEAM-compliant data.
Property owners often face several obstacles when working toward BREEAM water certification, including:
Limited monitoring infrastructure: Many properties struggle to meet BREEAM leak detection requirements due to a lack of comprehensive monitoring systems and sub-metering capabilities.
Data gaps: The absence of historical water consumption data makes it challenging to establish baselines and demonstrate improvements in water efficiency, leak prevention, and monitoring.
Technology misconceptions: Assumptions that advanced monitoring requires expensive upgrades can prevent implementation. In reality, Smartvatten's plug-and-play water monitoring system can be installed in just minutes.
Looking ahead, BREEAM requirements will increasingly emphasise risk management and continuous optimisation capabilities. Future iterations will likely demand more sophisticated integration with emerging regulatory frameworks, including the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSDR) and EU Taxonomy requirements.
Furthermore, the benefits of Smartvatten's solutions extend beyond BREEAM by supporting emerging regulatory requirements, such as those of CSRD and the EU Taxonomy. Properties with comprehensive monitoring systems are better positioned to meet multiple compliance requirements and future-proof their sustainability strategies.
Ready to enhance your BREEAM water performance? Contact us today to discover how Smartvatten can help you achieve certification goals while delivering immediate operational benefits.
Let's make every drop count!
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