“While we may not have to worry about water alerts, many of our regional neighbours and holiday destinations will have restrictions in place over the summer period that you need to be conscious of.
“We want to ensure our water use continues on its current path and that can only be done if we are conservative and aware of our water use.”
Making water savings an everyday habit was as simple as checking for any leaks. A toilet leak was often silent but a continuously running toilet could waste up to 700 litres of water a day.
To check for a toilet leak, remove the cistern lid, put in a few drops of blue or green food colouring and wait 15 minutes. If the water in the bowl has changed colour, you have a leak.
Waitomo District Council’s general manager of infrastructure services Shyamal Ram said people could reduce their water use in simple ways.
“For the past few years, our district has been heavily impacted by severe weather events and flooding. Despite this, it is predicted to be a hot summer, which means increased demand for water.
“Making small changes will collectively have a big impact in the long term so we encourage you to adopt one or two simple water-saving tips, educate your friends, family, and neighbours, and let us know if you see people or companies taking water from our hydrants or any water wastage happening in our district.”
About Smart Water and partnering councils
The Smart Water Starts With You! sub-regional campaign aims to make long-term changes to how we use water and is a partnership between Waipā District Council, Hamilton City Council and Waitomo District Council. It aimed to foster a greater understanding and appreciation of water and to support schools, organisations and the community to use it efficiently.
The Smart Water website smartwater.org.nz has water-saving tips that can make an immediate difference, including:
- Choose one water-saving tip that you will start doing and make it a permanent habit.
- Keep the pool cover on. On average, a 3.5-metre pool loses 53 litres a day to evaporation – that’s the same as leaving the kitchen tap running full blast for more than 8 minutes a day. A pool cover also keeps bugs and leaves out and stops the sun turning the water green.
- Take your kids to your local public pool to cool down.
- Keep a jug of water in the fridge so you don’t need to run the tap.
- Mulch your plants – this will stop 97 per cent of water in the soil from evaporating. Use bark, grass clippings or pea straw.
- Water is going to be in demand – use it for the things that matter. Let your lawn go brown and use water for your veges.
- You might take more frequent showers to stay cool but keep them short.
- Collect rainwater from your roof and use it on your plants.
- Raise your lawnmower blade a notch – grass can survive the heat better when it is longer.
- Rinse your feet before getting into a pool. Water will stay cleaner and require fewer chemical additives.
- Put the washing machine or dishwasher on only when it is full.
- Repair/fix leaking taps, toilet and shower.
- Avoid brushing your teeth under a running tap.
Smart Water has an e-newsletter to let you know when your alert level changes. Sign up at smartwater.org.nz/subscribe. For more water-saving tips, visit smartwater.org.nz.
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