J’cans urged to become water efficient
Published:Saturday | May 4, 2024 | 12:09 AMAsha Wilks/Gleaner Writer
Concerns have been raised about the quality of plumbing materials being used and how it affects water efficiency.
The unease came by way of an observation made by Instant Save Conservation Solutions (ISCS) that three out of every four households assessed are using water inefficiently. The implication is that Jamaicans are failing to employ the technologies that will assure cost-effective and efficient water usage.
Leanne Spence, chief executive director and co-founder of ISCS, discussed some of the findings her organisation made when performing assessments of residences and businesses.
She was speaking on Wednesday at the Science for Today public lecture series, organised by the Faculty of Science and Technology at The University of the West Indies under the theme ‘Down to the Last Drop: Tackling Jamaica’s Water Woes’.
She noted that during commercial inspections, nine out of every 10 firms visited had water fittings which fell short of the optimal efficiency requirement and consequently led to numerous leaks.
ISCS is an organisation motivated to empower citizens to move beyond issues of water scarcity, to have water security for the future.
“Over the past 10 years, our company has been focused on just that. An efficiency first approach called the demand side management (DSM),” Spence said.
This, she continued, is a strategic toolbox that promotes efficient water use, reduces consumption, and ensures a sustainable water future through behavioural changes, efficient technologies, and financial incentives.
Essentially, DSM is thought to be more cost-effective, faster and environmentally friendly than conventional supply-side methods.
“The goal of sustainable water management is to ensure that we have enough clean water to meet our current needs without compromising our future needs ... . This is going to include protecting our water resources, ensuring that they’re of quality as well as availability and then managing that demand. And that is using the water as efficiently as we can,” she added.
Spence called for a multi-pronged approach to deal with the current challenges surrounding water management. She highlighted that one running toilet can waste up to 11,000 gallons of water per month which resulted in a wastage of water causing a major financial impact, which translated to a water bill without sewerage costs of approximately $14,300.
Additionally, she noted that a 10-minute shower using conventional shower heads can use up to 25 gallons of water per minute.
Similarly, a diverter leak can waste one gallon of water every 40 seconds, she said.
Read water bills
She then urged citizens to start reading their water bills and metres as the first step towards improving the situation. She went on to say that this helps them to detect leaks and provides them with insight into their water consumption patterns.
The next step would be for citizens to make use of technologies which promote water efficiency such as leak detection technologies including smart meters or acoustic leak sensors; efficient plumbing fixtures and water-saving appliances like dishwashers and washing machines.
“So demand side management really has significant benefits. It has the economic benefits that is, lower water bills...it also improves productivity, less closure of schools, less closure of businesses. When you are more efficient, and you’ve built a sustainable water system for your property, home or your business it creates that buffer as well when we’re going through times of water shortages that you can still be operating during that time,” she said.
Spence called on Jamaicans to take on the role of “water ambassadors”, educating others about water conservation practices and adopting water-efficient technologies. She also urged them to upgrade their properties with these technologies and make investments in rainwater harvesting systems for optimal use.