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Citizen Science: South-African Water Management Possible in Hamilton?
BY Jagbir Dosanjh
ON June 9, 2014
Do you know how much water you use on a daily basis? Monthly? Hourly?
Your average water use can tell quite the story! From helping locate
leaks to proper allocation of water resources throughout the household,
small efforts in water conservation can help tremendously to save money
and the environment.
In Durban, South Africa, in an effort to curb water consumption, a Water Management Device (WMD) was recently introduced that provides electronic readings of water use at any point in the day. The WMD connects between the supply of water the home and gauges usage. Hour-to-hour measurements allow many advantages over standard household devices:
In Durban, South Africa, in an effort to curb water consumption, a Water Management Device (WMD) was recently introduced that provides electronic readings of water use at any point in the day. The WMD connects between the supply of water the home and gauges usage. Hour-to-hour measurements allow many advantages over standard household devices:
1. Readings taken while you’re
asleep may reveal leaks within your home, and for every $1 spent on
preventing leaks, $3 are potentially saved in water conservation!
DID YOU KNOW?
There are more than 1,900 km of water lines in Hamilton. That is equivalent to the distance to drive to Florida! There are bound to be leaks somewhere!
2. Prevents overuse, allowing users to acknowledge peak hours in their homes and how to allocate resources better.
DID YOU KNOW?
The recommended daily water requirement for sanitation, bathing, cooking and consumption is approximately 50 litres per person per day. However, the Canadian average water consumption is 343 litres per person per day.
In Durban, homes are allocated 25L of water per person per day. WMDs were given to households to properly gauge their usage. Individuals were given the option to pay for more water over the limit, or conserve water, allowing extra unused amounts to carry over to the following day. Once the limit was reached, the device would shut off water to the house, ensuring that extra fees were not charged.
Figure 2. Example of a WMD in Cape Town, South Africa (Utility Systems, 2014).
For support, hotlines were established allowing residents to request text messages indicating their remaining usage as the devices used were installed underground. These efforts helped to save over 156 million litres of water per month, saving approximately $55,000 CAD!
Are WMDs realistic for Hamilton? With a population of over 500,000, Hamilton is very similar to that of Durban (595,000). With enough support from the community and subsidization from the government, these devices could find their way to the mainstream. With current wireless technologies, the implementation of these devices could create a system that automatically informs cities about pipeline conditions and water shortages. Implementing technology such as this also works to educate homeowners to other environmentally friendly water saving techniques. Many of the older toilet models, for example, only require 12 flushes to reach 250L of used water. Along with newer shower heads and taps, the potential to save water is great. This device could make it greater.
There are more than 1,900 km of water lines in Hamilton. That is equivalent to the distance to drive to Florida! There are bound to be leaks somewhere!
2. Prevents overuse, allowing users to acknowledge peak hours in their homes and how to allocate resources better.
DID YOU KNOW?
The recommended daily water requirement for sanitation, bathing, cooking and consumption is approximately 50 litres per person per day. However, the Canadian average water consumption is 343 litres per person per day.
Figure 1. Graph depicting average water use per day by country (Government of Canada, 2014). Measurements provide insight into how valuable 10L of water really can be.
In Durban, homes are allocated 25L of water per person per day. WMDs were given to households to properly gauge their usage. Individuals were given the option to pay for more water over the limit, or conserve water, allowing extra unused amounts to carry over to the following day. Once the limit was reached, the device would shut off water to the house, ensuring that extra fees were not charged.
Figure 2. Example of a WMD in Cape Town, South Africa (Utility Systems, 2014).
For support, hotlines were established allowing residents to request text messages indicating their remaining usage as the devices used were installed underground. These efforts helped to save over 156 million litres of water per month, saving approximately $55,000 CAD!
Are WMDs realistic for Hamilton? With a population of over 500,000, Hamilton is very similar to that of Durban (595,000). With enough support from the community and subsidization from the government, these devices could find their way to the mainstream. With current wireless technologies, the implementation of these devices could create a system that automatically informs cities about pipeline conditions and water shortages. Implementing technology such as this also works to educate homeowners to other environmentally friendly water saving techniques. Many of the older toilet models, for example, only require 12 flushes to reach 250L of used water. Along with newer shower heads and taps, the potential to save water is great. This device could make it greater.
DID YOU KNOW?
Hamilton
was among the first cities in Canada to provide residents with
municipal drinking water and has been doing so for over 150 years (since
1859). 
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