Our water patrol officers are at home helping residents save water
After analysing water data, our water patrol officers made site visits to specific homes to meet with customers and install water-saving measures. These included showerhead exchanges, swapping twist type nozzles for trigger nozzles, giving away buckets, shower timers and dye (to test for leaks in toilets). Residents were also given information and advice on grey water use, water conservation and drought tolerant gardens.
For example, our officers made contact with a household in Richmond who was using up to 3,900 litres of water per day due to a leaking toilet. After speaking to family members, and identifying the leak, it became apparent that the residents required some assistance with their household affairs. Through our special needs assistance program, we organised a licensed plumber to repair several leaks inside the house and replace the old showerhead with a water efficient one. And to thank us for our work, we received a complementary letter from a relative of the family.
Throughout the course of the program in 2007-2008, our water patrol officers:
- visited 1,150 residential properties across nine municipalities
- identified and helped repair 16 leaks
- exchanged 78 showerheads for water-efficient ones and 82 trigger nozzles
- handed out 187 shower times as well as 72 information packs.
Overall, the program was well received by the community and, most importantly, has helped our customers achieve some great water-saving results – in excess of 8,000 litres of water per day have been saved.