Wasting of water

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 in local ordinances 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.” 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. Typically, a list of specific acts or omissions that constitute the waste of water is also given.

Examples of wasteful uses of water

Water utilities (and other media sources) often provide listings of wasteful water-use practices, prohibitions or water saving tips. Examples include utilities in San Antonio, Texas. Las Vegas, Nevada, California Water Service company in California, and City of San Diego, California. Some commonly mentioned wasteful practices include:

• Allowing water fixtures (including toilets, faucets, shower heads) or heating or cooling devices to leak or run to waste.
• Using toilet as a waste basket (to dispose tissues, insects and other such waste)
• Letting water run while brushing teeth or shaving
• Taking long showers (longer than 5 minutes)
• Defrosting food in a sink (under running water)
• Hand washing dishes under running water (instead of filling one sink or basin with soapy water)
• Overusing kitchen sink disposals (as it requires lots of water to operate properly)
• Running partial loads in clothes washer or dishwasher without adjustment of fill volume
• Use of a water hose not equipped with a control nozzle
• Irrigation of landscaping during rainfall or 48 hours after a measurable rain event.
• Overfilling of ponds, pools or fountains which results in water discharging to waste.
• Maintaining ponds, waterways, decorative basins or swimming pools without water re-circulation devices.
• Unnecessary emptying and refilling of 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.

Related concepts

Strictly speaking, water that is discharged into sewer, or directly to the environment is not wasted or lost. 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 captured, stored, transported and treated 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 also for supporting ecosystems. Two concepts that are closely related to water wasting are "water-use efficiency" and "water conservation."

Water use is inefficient if the same purpose of its use can be accomplished with less water. Technical efficiency, derives from engineering practice where it is typically used to describe the ratio of output to input. Technical efficiency is useful in comparing various products and processes. 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 measures unless the inputs and outputs are measured in value terms. This expression of efficiency is referred to as economic efficiency.

Water conservation is defined as any beneficial reduction in water use or water losses. The term “beneficial reduction” signifies a requirement (consistent with the concept of economic efficiency) that the reduction in water use or losses results 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 water conservation or undertaking improvements in efficiency of water use; 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 in order to prevent adverse impacts of severe shortages in the future if the drought continues.

See also

• Water conservation
• Outdoor water-use restriction
• Residential water use in the U.S. and Canada
• Water use