Water Consumption

Water Consumption is the amount of water that is used. Usually, it is referred to how much water is being used on a daily basis. As water is readily available through public distribution systems and delivered to the customer's faucets, water use is easily overused due to convenience. Think of all the instances in a day that you turn a faucet on, flush the toilet, shower/bathe, run the evaporative cooler, water the lawn or garden, wash the car, fill the swimming pool, and so on. During the summer months is when consumption reaches its peak.

In 2001, El Paso's daily water consumption was 155 gallons per person. This was a great improvement from 200 gallons per person per day in 1990 and remains lower than most cities through out the country. It is hard to imagine that anyone of us might use that much water in one day, remember it is an overall average. The consumption rate is calculated by dividing El Paso's population into the total consumption readings that are recorded, this includes commercial and industrial businesses. This calculation may also be done according to specific classifications such as Residential Consumption water which is only calculated from home use. El Paso's target rate for 2010 is 140 gallons per person per day. This goal will help El Paso ensure that the water available now continues to meet the growing water needs of the future