Water Wars Move from Courtroom to Bathroom: Atlanta Seeks to Conserve Precious Resource

During the summer of 2009, Atlanta residents were startled when a federal judge threatened to cut off the city's water supply. The July decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit sought to end an 18-year, tri-state water war between Georgia, Alabama and Florida. The judge gave the Peach State three years to end its reliance on Lake Lanier, a 38,000-acre federal reservoir north of Atlanta that is the main water source for the city's more than three million residents.

Until a long-term, water-sharing agreement can be established, Atlanta officials have renewed their water conservation initiatives. According to the state, the average Georgia resident uses between 60 gallons and 88 gallons of water daily.

Research conducted by the American Water Works Association has determined that adopting existing water-efficient technology could reduce indoor daily water usage to 45 gallons per person for single-family homes, a savings of 25 percent to 48 percent.

• Replace outdated toilets: Older toilets are the main source of water use in the home, accounting for nearly 30 percent of residential indoor water consumption. Replacing older toilets with those approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) WaterSense program can save 4,000 gallons per year.
• The right mix of tax credits, rebates and incentives to change out wasteful toilets and other plumbing fixtures could save nearly 55 million gallons of water a day in metro Atlanta. Moreover, today's high-efficiency toilets (HETs) often outperform conventional low-flow toilets, using only 1.28 gallons per flush rather than the current federal standard of 1.6 GPF with no trade-off in flushing power or the need to "double flush."
• Replace or upgrade bathroom sink faucets: Faucets account for 15 percent of indoor household water use, according to the EPA. WaterSense-labeled faucets reduce this standard flow by more than 30 percent.
• Fix leaky pipes: Metro Atlanta water utilities estimate an average of 16 percent of the water they treat at their plants is lost to leaks in pipes before it ever reaches the home. Reducing leaks could save nearly 60 million gallons of water a day, nearly one-third the amount that metro Atlanta gets from Lake Lanier. The city is currently averaging 800 leak repairs per month, compared with 700 per year when the water system was operated privately.
• Stopping outdoor watering during daytime hours: This measure includes providing incentives and considering mandates where it makes sense to suspend outdoor watering during the daytime (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.), when most water applied to landscapes evaporates anyway.

A study by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division found that after a long-running drought in 2008 forced a ban on outdoor water use, residents have made conservation a habit. According to data collected from a 55-county north Georgia area, June 2009 water use was down 18.4 percent as compared with 2007. State officials hope that by demonstrating water responsibility, Atlanta residents will be in a better position to negotiate continued use of Lake Lanier. Such a level of savings would translate to greater water supply for metro Atlanta as well as lessen the strain on an already overburdened Chattahoochee River system.