The Local Weekly The heart and soul of our communities with news and information about the Sunshine Coast
If 23,000 people on the Sunshine Coast are consuming 20 million litres of water per day during stage 2 restrictions, there must be something seriously wrong.
That works out to almost 870 litres per day per person!
A conservative household should only use 150 litres per day per person and water gluttons, up to 350 litres/day/person. Even at stage 4, with 10 million litres per day being consumed (about 435 litres/day/person) we are worse than gluttons.
Leaks are the prime suspect for this waste of clean water. Water meters will help greatly to locate and quantify leaks.
The installation of water meters is expected to save 20 percent of our 20 million litres per day of drinking water. We could potentially save four million litres per day by metering. This is approximately double the current output of the non-potable water from the Sechelt wastewater treatment facility and we won’t need a very costly and potentially more risky dual reticulation system to provide it.
It should also be pointed out that under low or negative pressure events such as pump failures, the bursting of water mains, firefighting, etc. leaks can allow the ingress of potentially contaminated water into the drinking water supply system. In this way, leaks pose an ongoing risk to public health which can only be mitigated if detected and corrected.
As we move towards increased potential for cross-contamination with fire water systems, grey water systems, solar water systems, renovated sewer wastewater, etc. the need for a Cross Connection Control Program is strongly indicated. As a minimum this should include guidelines, standards, administrative procedures, bylaws, hazard assessments, testing protocols, public relations, education and an emergency response plan.
Marc Nixon, Sechelt
Absolutely, Who could argue that it is better to *not* know where our water is going. Water meters will inform us and ensure that our resources both natural and financial are wisely employed.