Introducing water demand management

Water demand management is a significant area of work and one that is increasingly important for planners and designers to engage with.

Local authorities can help support more sustainable water consumption behaviour through the planning and design of individual sites and neighbourhoods, as well as city-wide communication strategies.

The amount of water used per person per day is dependent not only on the physiological requirements of hydration and sanitation, but also cultural practices.

Water consumption in the developed world is far greater than that in the developing world and has increased markedly since water was piped directly to private properties. Historically, water utility management was based on a ‘predict and provide’ model of forecasting demand and developing supply infrastructure to meet it. As demand has continued to grow many cities have reached the limit of water available in rivers and ground water to be abstracted for human use, particularly during droughts. Utilities are reaching the limits of being able to increase supply continually and must now work with consumers to manage demand.

Water demand management is a way of educating consumers to change the technologies and culture of how people use water. For example, to conserve drinking water by turning off the tap when brushing teeth or washing up; to keep a jug of cold water in the fridge to avoid the need to run the tap to cold; by the installation of low flow tap and shower fittings; through purchasing water efficient dishwashers and washing machines; or capturing stormwater in a butt for use in the garden. This can help prevent large-scale water shortages and preserve the natural environment by avoiding over abstraction of water from rivers and bore holes. It also reduces the need to construct new large scale infrastructure such as reservoirs and dams.

Understanding the water demand in a local area and the key pressures on the system will provide a useful evidence base for identifying actions. Such information will also feed into the evidence base for local development frameworks.

Schools can be an effective place to start changing behaviour about saving water. With annual water bills of £2,000 for a primary school and double that for a secondary school this can also help schools reduce their costs.

For more information on water demand management and saving water in schools see the Waterwise website.

Priority: encourage public transport, walking and cycling
Tags: water, cities and towns, neighbourhoods