Water Conservation

Conserving water means using less water in your day-to-day life. Conserving water helps to:

Use less water from our local rivers and lakes
Reduce water and wastewater treatment costs
Reduce energy used to treat, pump and heat water
Save you money on your utility bill

You can reduce your water use by:

Adjusting your daily habits
Using water efficient fixtures and appliances

Tips to use less water at home

Bathroom

Repair leaking faucets and toilets. A small drip can add up to 27,000 litres per year if unattended.
Shower instead of bathing. This can save 70 litres per session.
Install a flow restrictor on your shower and sink head.
Turn off your tap when brushing your teeth or shaving. This can save more than 6,900 litres of water per year.
Install a low-flow toilet that uses 70% less water per flush.

Laundry

Only run the washing machine if you have a full load of clothes.
Consider purchasing a high efficiency washing machine that will use about 30% less water and 40% less electricity.

Kitchen

Clean fruits and vegetables in bowl of water instead of running water. You can re-use the water to water indoor plants.
Chill water in the fridge instead of running the tap.
Do not use garburators.
Scrape your dishes instead of rinsing them before you put them in the dishwasher.
Consider purchasing a water efficient dishwasher that will use about 30% less water.

Outdoor

Sweep your driveway instead of spraying it with a hose.
Don't over-water your lawn. Make sure your sprinkler is watering just the lawn, and not the driveway or sidewalk.
Water early in the morning or late in the evening to prevent water loss from evaporation.
Collect rainwater to water your outdoor plants.
Plant drought-resistant trees and shrubs

Other

Insulate your hot water pipes and your electric water heater.
When purchasing a water softener, consider a model that has a “hardness sensor” that will automatically trigger a regeneration.

Water efficient fixtures

Replacing older, less efficient fixtures can help reduce your household's water use and save you money on your water and sewer bill.

There are a variety of water efficient fixtures and appliances on the market. View the comparison below to see how much water you could save per year.

Standard versus water-efficient fixtures

	Older/standard model	Water-efficient model	Savings per year
Shower	eight litres per minute	6 litres per minute	9,052 litres or 22%
Washer	155 litres per load	102 litres per load	20,732 litres or 34%
Dishwasher	40 per load	26 litres per load	4,380 litres or 33%
Toilet	20 litres per flush	6 litres per flush	67,747 litres or 70%
Faucet/Aerator	19 litres per minute	6 litres per minute	103,551 litres or 70%

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