Wasting of water
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Wasting of water (or water waste) means causing or permitting discharge of water without any practical purpose. Inefficient water use is also considered wasteful.
Definition
Legal definition of water waste is often given as any acts or omissions, whether willful or negligent, that are “causing or permitting water to leak, discharge, flow or run to waste into any gutter, sanitary sewer, watercourse or public or private storm drain, or to any adjacent property, from any tap, hose, faucet, pipe, sprinkler, pond, pool, waterway, fountain or nozzle.”[1] In this example, the city code also clarifies that “in the case of washing, “discharge,” “flow” or “run to waste” means that water in excess of that necessary to wash, wet or clean the dirty or dusty object, such as an automobile, sidewalk, or parking area, flows to waste. Other specific acts or omissions that constitute the waste of water are also given and include:
- Allowing water fixtures (including, but not limited to, toilets, faucets, shower heads) or heating or cooling devices to leak or run to waste.
- Maintaining ponds, waterways, decorative basins or swimming pools without water recirculation devices.
- Backwashing so as to discharge to waste swimming pools, decorative basins or ponds in excess of the frequency necessary to ensure the healthful condition of the water.
- Operation of an irrigation system that applies water to an impervious surface or that is in disrepair.
- Use of a water hose not equipped with a control nozzle capable of completely shutting off the flow of water except when positive pressure is applied.
- Irrigation of landscaping during rainfall or 48 hours after a measurable rain event.
- Overfilling of any pond, pool or fountain which results in water discharging to waste.
Other providers of public water supply specify similar prohibitions of wasteful uses of water. Examples include San Antonio, Texas[2]. Las Vegas, Nevada[3], and California Water Service company in California[4]
Related concepts
Strictly speaking, water that is discharged into sewer, or directly to the environment is not wasted (in the sense of being destroyed). It remains within the hydrologic cycle and returns back to land surface and surface water bodies as precipitation. What is "wasted" is community's supply of water that was treated (at considerable expense) to drinking quality standards. Efficient use of water saves the expense of water supply provision and leaves more fresh water in lakes, rivers and aquifers for other users and for supporting ecosystems. Two concepts that are closely related to water wasting are "water-use efficiency" and "water conservation."
The term, efficiency, derives from engineering practice where it is typically used to describe technical efficiency, or the ratio of output to input. The criterion of technical efficiency is useful in comparing various products and processes.[5] For example, one showerhead would be considered more efficient than another if it could accomplish the same purpose (i.e., of showering) by using less water or other inputs (e.g., lower water pressure). However, the technical efficiency concept is not useful in making decisions of investing money (or resources) in water conservation unless the inputs and outputs are measured in value terms. This expression of efficiency is referred to as economic efficiency which is linked conceptually to water conservation. Water conservation can be defined as any beneficial reduction in water use or water losses.[6] The term “beneficial reduction” signifies a requirement (consistent with the concept of economic efficiency) that the reduction in water use or losses should result in a net increase in social welfare where the resources used have a lesser value than those saved. This definition provides guidance (through benefit-cost analysis) for long-term conservation; however, it cannot be easily applied to short-term restrictions and prohibitions of some uses of water which are usually aimed at curtailing water demand during a drought. Temporary restrictions on water use are usually undertaken in order to prevent adverse impacts of severe shortages in the future if the drought continues.
See also
References
- ^ City of Roseville, California Municipal Code http://qcode.us/codes/roseville/view.php?topic=14-14_09-14_09_030&frames=off
- ^ http://www.saws.org/conservation/waterwaste/whatiswaste.cfm
- ^ https://www.lvvwd.com/conservation/waste.html
- ^ https://www.calwater.com/conservation/water-waste-report/
- ^ Dziegielewski, B. J. C. Kiefer. 2010. Water Conservation Measurement Metrics: Guidance Report. American Water Works Association - Water Conservation Division Subcommittee. Published by the AWWA. January 22, 2010. 68 pp. https://www.awwa.org/Portals/0/files/resources/resource%20dev%20groups/tech%20and%20educ%20program/documents/WaterConservationMeasurementMetricsGuidanceReport.pdf
- ^ Duane D. Baumann, John J. Boland, John H. Sims 1984. Water Conservation: The Struggle over Definition. Water Resources Research. Volume 20, Issue 4, April 1984. Pages 428–434 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/WR020i004p00428/full