Published: 2009/03/30 – The Star

By EDWARD RAJENDRA

SHAH ALAM: The simple acts of fixing water taps and reusing water discharged from washing machines can not only lower consumers’ monthly bills but also help the environment.

Selangor and Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya Water Association vice-president Datuk Muhamad Azaham Abdul Wahab said that communities in rural and urban areas must understand that water is a precious resource for everyone.

“We are concerned that a lot of treated water is lost around the home due to leaking pipes and dripping taps,” he said yesterday at the World Water Day at the Puncak Niaga (M) Sdn Bhd headquarters in Section 13 here.

“It may not seem much but it adds up and the owner of the house ends up forking out extra for the monthly bill.”

He said fixing water taps could help arrest wastage and in the long term, save money and help the environment.

Muhamad Azaham also encouraged housewives to reuse water discharged from washing machines to wash their driveway or even to clean the drains in their compounds to lower their water bills.

He said that a “slow dripping tap” could waste a couple of litres of water an hour and reach almost 20,000 litres a year.

“On average, a person uses about 200 litres of water per day, of which five to 10 litres is for basic things like drinking and food preparation,” he added.

Muhamad Azaham said about half of the treated water supplied to urban areas in Selangor ended up as waste water because people “took it for granted.”