Additional Conservation Tips
Residential Water Use Summary
Water Use Statistics
You are here: Home > Departments > Public Works > Water Services Division > Water Conservation > Residential Water Use Summary
The following information is provided through the U.S. Geological Survey and the American Water Works Association.
Water Conservation Fixtures
If all U.S. households installed water-saving features, water use would decrease by 30%, saving an estimated 5.4 billion gallons per day. This would result in savings of $11.3 million per day, or more than $4 billion per year. Water-conserving fixtures installed in U.S. households in 1998 alone saved 44 million gallons of water every day, resulting in total dollar-value savings of more than $33.6 million per year.
Household Water Use
Average daily household water use - 350 gallons
Average household water use annually - 127,400 gallons
National Water Use
Approximately 339,000 million gallons per day (MGD) of freshwater (about a quarter of the national renewable supply) were withdrawn during 1990 for use by the nation's homes, farms, and industries. About 220 billion gallons per day were returned to streams after use. The withdrawals during 1990 were about 7% less than during 1980, the maximum year reported, and about the same as during 1985. Some reasons for the decline are:
Active conservation programs
Enhanced awareness by the general public to water resources
Higher costs to obtain water
New technologies requiring less water
Locations & Water Use
Amount of Water Received (in MGD)