Household Water Use

(Originally posted on waterefficiency.net)

By Elizabeth Cutright
Editor
Water Efficiency

As you all know by now, last week Water Efficiency and Forester Media Inc. unveiled Waterprint, our first iPhone application. Waterprint is intended to be a fun and educational tool designed to make users aware of the virtual water imbedded in the products and behaviors typical of daily life in the developed world. We plan on continually updating the application, and part of the process involves you, the user.
In fact, many of the comments I’ve received have revolved around the “household” section of the application. As we explain in the “information” section of the application, “Household water use runs the gamut from toilets to lawns, and all the gallons associated with those activities can be measured and mitigated.”
While we briefly discuss the impact of toilet flushes and running faucets, we plan to expand our coverage of household water use and water efficient fixtures and technologies in subsequent versions of the Waterprint application. After all, the EPA has concluded that the installation of WaterSense fixtures could save a family of four 17,000 gallons a year—and that's a significant amount of water no matter where you live.
When talking about household water use, it’s also important to address the issue of leaks. Leaks, also known as “unaccounted for water,” account for 6 billion gallons of water per day in the US. That 6 billion includes water lost to leaks and damaged conveyance systems. As we point out in the information section of the Waterprint application, 6 billion gallons is “enough water to supply 10 of the largest urban centers in the country.” It’s the antithesis of efficiency and an appalling misuse of one of our most valuable resources—especially in a world where so many communities struggle to supply enough water to fulfill the basic needs of their citizens. And keep in mind that when you factor in the amount of energy required to treat and transport all of that lost water (approximately 3 gallons for every kilowatt) the cost is astronomical, both in terms of actual dollars but also in greenhouse gas emissions and our continued dependence on foreign oil.
We’ve already received a lot of feedback, along with some helpful suggestions and important questions. Please keep sending in your insights, questions, complaints, challenges, and comments. With your help, we are confident that our first iPhone application can become a powerful tool for change