Shanghai aims to limit
residential water consumption per person to within 0.155 cubic meters a day by
2010 and revise the quota for business and industrial water users to improve use
efficiency.
The Shanghai Water Authority said yesterday it will employ a new pricing
system setting lower rates for frugal water use.
Other measures include education and upgrading water-consuming facilities
like flush toilets. Old residential flush toilets are a major cause of waste.
The authority launched a weeklong water conservation campaign running until
Saturday. It includes displays of government conservation measures and spot
checks of big water users.
The new pricing system will set quotas for different rates, to encourage all
users to be frugal. Details of pricing system were not yet disclosed, but
officials said it's likely to go into effect this year.
"It is crucial that a water conservation mechanism allows economic measures
to play a major role," said the authority's water supply administration.
Currently the residential water consumption per capita per day is 0.165 cubic
meters. Most home water is used for flushing toilets and taking baths. It is
estimated that urban residents use 30 percent to 40 percent of their water to
flush their toilets.
Toilets meeting old standards waste a lot of water, flushing away an
unnecessary amount of water. Old toilet tanks contain 13 liters and often leak.
The current standard is 9 liters.
The government has upgraded 68,000 toilets in old apartments at no cost since
2003. But some 600,000 homes are still using inefficient toilets that waste
24,000 cubic meters of water a day.
Officials are also preparing to revise water quotas for different industries
and businesses to make the quotas more practical. The current quota was issued
in 2001 and doesn't satisfy current conditions and requirements for water
saving.
The city will closely monitor heavy water-using industries, such as power
generation, metallurgy and chemical companies, which consume more than 20,000
cubic meters of water a month. More recycling will be required.
Forty-five major water users will be tested to calculate a reasonable water
consumption level.
The city used nearly 3 billion cubic meters of tap water last year, an
increase of 4.8 percent year on year, with the peak daily demand approaching 10
million cubic meters.
