Canada; A Guide to Wise Water Use - Hamilton, Ontario

8/3/2019 Canada; A Guide to Wise Water Use - Hamilton, Ontario

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REVISED 2007


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A Guide toPreservingHamiltons

FreshwaterResourcesThis guide is designed to help you and

your family reduce your use of naturesmost precious resource.

A Precious ResourceWater is a necessity of lifenot only to you and me butto all living things.

Water makes up about 70% of our body weight and weneed to drink about two litres per day to help us stay healthy.

Water improves the quality of our lives. Water is used to produce power,grow food, and manufacture goods. It also provides ways of transporting

people and products all over the world. We use water everyday at home andat work in so many ways that we often take it for granted.

Water is constantly being re-circulated. This means that water isnt just used,its re-used. The water we see and use today is the same water that was here

when the dinosaurs roamed the earth. Think about that the next time youflush the toilet or have a glass of water.

Hamiltonresidents,

industries,and

theCity

mustcontinue

withefforts

toimprovewa

terquality.

Thiswillbenef

ithuman

healthandthelivesofth

e

wildlifewesha

reitwith. Green Heron


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Reduced Run-off PollutionCapturing rainfall, diverting downspouts, and using water wisely outdoorscan help reduce pollution caused by run-off. Capturing rain and using itinstead of treated water on lawns and gardens also reduces the need forenergy-consuming treated water.

Deferred Infrastructure CostsReducing our water use as a community can help defer millions of dollars

worth of operating and maintenance costs associated with upgrading thewater and wastewater treatment plants.

Reduced Pollution Discharged into Hamilton HarbourNutrients are a pollution concern in Hamilton Harbour that cause excessivealgae growth. Sewage treatment plants represent a considerable source ofnutrient loading to the harbour. Reducing the amount of wastewater through

Wise Water Use can help decrease the amount of sewage that is required tobe treated.

Thechoiceswemakein

oureverydayl

ivescanhave

positiveor

negativeeffe

ctsonwater

quality

andtheenviro

nment.

UseAGuidetoWiseWaterUsetomaketherightchoices.

It's up It's up

Bay Front Park, Hamilton Harbour


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400

300

200

100

0

UnitedStates380 Litres

Canada335 Litres

Italy250 Litres

Sweden200 Litres

Litres of water per person per dayDomestic Water Use by Country

Adapted from Environment Canada

How Much Water Do We Use?According to Environment Canada, Canadian residential consumersuse roughly twice as much water per person as compared to otherindustrialized countries, with the exception of the

United States.In 2001, the average Canadianresident used 335 litres of

water per day, just indoors!This amount can increase by50% in the summer months.

UsetheGuideto

WiseWaterU

setoprevent

wastingwate

r,helpreduce

your

utilitycosts,

andprotecto

ur

waterresource

s.


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Showers & BathsThe average 5-minute shower uses 100 litres of

water. The average bathtub requires up to 200litres to fill.

The following chart shows what showers andbaths can cost an average family:

Heatingwater

costsmuch

morethanthe

wateritself.

Studiesshow

thatinstalling

alow-flow

showerheadca

nsavethe

averagefamilyoffourar

ound

$570.00pery

ear!

Family Showers Baths Annual Annual Annual

Member / Week / Week Water Use Water Cost Energy Cost Total Costs

Mom 6 1 38,064 $69.66 $186.51 $256.17

Dad 7 0 36,400 $66.61 $178.36 $244.97

Young Child 0 3 20,592 $37.68 $100.90 $138.58

Teenager 10 0 104,000 $190.32 $509.60 $699.92Total Family Water Use 199,056 $364.27 $975.37 $1,339.64* Based on 2007 water rate of $1.826 ($0.913 for water + $0.913 for sewer). 20 litres per minute showerhead. 5-minute showers for

Mom and Dad, 10-minute showers for Teenager, and filling an average-sized bathtub 2/3 full. Electricity at $0.10/kWh. Cost to heat water

at $0.007/litre. 70% hot and 30% cold water split.

7


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LaundryCompare the energy and water costs for washersbased on an average family of four use.

This family could save around $230.00 per year by switching from an oldwasher to a new Energy Star rated model. In addition to these savings, there

can also be unseen savings. Especially withfront-loading clothes washers:

1/3 less water means buying 1/3 lesslaundry soap

higher spinning speed means less time in thedryer = less energy costs!

Before buying a new appliance, always check

the EnerGuide website. There you will learnabout your options for water and energysavings for new appliances -

www.oee.nrcan.gc.ca/residential/personal/.

You can also find out the costs to operateyour old appliances on the EnerGuide website.This information could save your household

hundreds of dollars in utility costs.

11

Thetimespent

researchingne

wappliances

andlearningt

hecoststo

operateoldapp

liances

couldsaveyourhouseh

old

hundredsofdo

llars.

Annual Annual

Energy Use Water Cost Total

20 years old $124.30 $149.94 $274.24

New Energy Star Rated $9.50 $31.32 $40.82

* Source - EnerGuide* Based on EnerGuide standards of 392 cycles per year, or approximately 7.5 loads per week.


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LeaksLeaks, especially in toilets, may be difficult todetect and can waste large amounts of water.Fixing these leaks can be inexpensive and cansave a lot of water!

Toilet leaksA leaking toilet can waste up to 400,000 litres of water, orthe equivalent of around $730.00 per year! (the cost of a few new toilets).

Flapper valves function as a gasket between the toilet tank and bowl and arethe most common source of a toilet leak. Flapper valves can sometimes fail

with use and wear, which releases a steady flow of water from the toilet tank

to the bowl.To check to see if you have a leaking toilet tank, place dye tablets or a littlefood colouring into the tank. Wait 20-30 minutes, if there is colour in thebowl, then you know you have a leak.

Cootes Paradise.

Leakytapsan

d

toiletscanco

st

youhundredso

f

dollarsinwas

ted

waterevery

year!


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OutdoorsThe average Canadian uses around335 litres of water everyday - justindoors! In the summer months, thisuse can increase by as much as 50%.

Environment Canada states that up to50% of the water we use outdoors is

wasted. This can equate to thousands andthousands of litres of water being wastedfrom a single household every year.

Hamiltons Waterworks By-law

R84-026 restricts lawn and gardenwatering to every other day. Even-numbered municipal addresses are

permitted to water on even-numbered days

Odd-numbered municipal addresses arepermitted to water on odd-numbered days

Residents without a municipal address, located

on the west and north sides of the street arepermitted to water on even-numbered days

Residents without a municipal address, locatedon the east and south sides of the street arepermitted to water on odd-numbered days

Healthy lawn watering tips

Lawns require only 1 of water, once a week Over watering can cause damage

Keep track of rainfall; only water your lawn if rainfall is not enough

Water early in the morning or evening to avoid evaporation

Keep grass cut a minimum of 3 to prevent evaporation, crowd out weeds,and promote deep roots

Aerate compact soils for better water infiltration and increased oxygen

exchange with grass roots Limit or eliminate chemical pesticide and fertilizer use; these can lead to

poor lawn health

Anoutdoorgar

den

hosethatruns

for4

hoursperweek

from

JunetoSeptem

bercan

useover130,000litre

s

ofwaterperyear!

That'senough

watertofilltwo

medium-sized

swimmingpool

s.


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GUIDE TO WISE WATER USE REVISED 2007

PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER

TheWise Water Use

program is a partnership betweenthe City of Hamilton's Public WorksDepartment and Green Venture.

Since 2001, theWise Water Use

program has helped reduce utilitybills and protect our local water

resources.

For more information or to bookan EcoHouse Tour, please visit

www.hamilton.ca/water

or call905546CITY(2489)

Documents

Canada; A Guide to Wise Water Use - Hamilton, Ontario