GOAL 20: Encourage individual water conservation through efficient household use of water resources.
INDICATOR: Overall regional water consumption per capita
Why is this important?
Water use per capita is an indication of how efficiently regional residents use water in their homes. Calculating per capita water use also provides an indication of future water needs for the region.
How are we doing?
Based on calculations from the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District published in 2003, the total estimated consumption in the 10-county Atlanta region is 120.5 gallons per capita per day, varying from 97 gallons per day in Cherokee County to 178 gallons per day in Fulton. (Per capita water use is the total water usage in a given area, divided by the area's population.)
In non-farming areas such as metro Atlanta, the primary factors contributing to water consumption per capita are residential landscaping needs and lot size, house size and number of bathrooms, personal water use habits and type and efficiency (including maintenance) of residential water-consuming appliances such as tubs and showers, washing machines, and dishwashers.
Overall, the Atlanta region uses about 445 million gallons of water per day - with most of this water (53.8 percent) going for residential use. Commercial uses (shopping malls, office buildings, restaurants, etc.) consume 22.8 percent; government uses consume 5.6 percent; industry uses only 4.2 percent; and another 13.6 percent is used for miscellaneous uses such as agriculture or recreation.
Environmental Sustainability
