Uisce Éireann Issues Appeal To The Public In Laois To Conserve

Uisce Éireann has launched its annual water conservation campaign asking people in Laois to conserve and help protect and preserve water supplies by adopting simple water saving practices at home, in the garden and at work.

The appeal comes on foot of a survey which claims that almost a third of Irish people are completely disengaged with water conservation.

The ethos of the appeal is that by taking some simple steps to conserve water at home, in the garden and at work, people can play their part in protecting local water supplies for themselves and their neighbours. Below are some of the water-saving tips that Uisce Eireann are advising.

Don’t let the tap run: Brushing your teeth with the tap running can use up to a staggering 6 litres per minute. Brushing your teeth with the tap off will use a more modest 1 litre of water.

Leak free: Check that your home is leak free. Check for running overflows and fix any dripping taps, cisterns or pipes.

Shower vs. Bath: The average bath uses 80 litres of water, while a 7-minute shower uses just 49 litres. Switching to showers can save a significant amount of water.

Drop the hose: Drop the hose during the summer months. Use a rose head watering can to water your plants, instead of a hose or sprinkler.

Install a water butt: Use it to collect rainwater from your gutters for gardening or washing the yard.

Fully loaded: Always ensure your dishwasher and washing machines are fully loaded. A modern washing machine uses approximately 65 litres of water per cycle while a dishwasher uses 20 litres. By ensuring they are fully loaded, not only will you conserve water, but you will also reduce your energy bills.

Don’t flush it all away: A third of all water used in the home is flushed down the toilet. Some larger cisterns can continue to work effectively with a smaller flush. Place a displacement device into the cistern (out of the way of moving parts) to save water.

Discussing the campaign, Uisce Éireann’s Head of Water Operations, Margaret Attridge, said:

“A recent survey carried out for Uisce Eireann found that almost a third of people had no interest or awareness in water conservation. We’re committed to building greater understanding of, and respect for, our precious water resources and that’s why we are launching this campaign today. To support this, we have developed a suite of easy to use online resources including a free water conservation calculator which makes it easy for people to track their own and their family’s water use. The calculator, along with lots of simple water saving tips, can be found at water.ie/conservation.”