Abstract
Water demand management can be effective as a resource management approach if demand estimation is accurate and consumption determinants are defined. While determinants such as household income, regional climate, water price, property size and household occupancy have been comprehensively studied and modelled, other determinants such as swimming pools and intra-city climates have not. This study examines residential water consumption in the City of Cape Town in 2008/2009, under property size regimes, to separately determine whether the presence of pools or occurrence of different intra-city precipitation patterns have an influence on water consumption. A sample of 14 233 properties is analysed, with 20.86% having swimming pools within their boundaries. Overall, those properties with swimming pools used 37.36% or 8.85 kl per month more water than those without, with pools having a larger influence on household consumption on smaller properties. These results were statistically significant. Different precipitation patterns occurred over the study period, and while there were indications that consumption may be lower if there is more rainfall, limited evidence was found to support the hypothesis. Keywords: water consumption, water demand management, swimming pools, precipitation, Cape Town
Highlights
Water consumption in Cape Town will fall short of supply by 2013 at current levels of use without further augmentation (CoCT, 2007b)
The study period was from September 2008 until November 2009, with an initial sample of 162 177 properties that were zoned ‘single residential one’ being reduced to 14 233 properties near the 4 selected weather stations located across the city
It was hypothesised that pools and different weather patterns, precipitation, would have significant influences on household consumption
Summary
Water consumption in Cape Town will fall short of supply by 2013 at current levels of use without further augmentation (CoCT, 2007b). Difficulties in estimating future consumption and in estimating the influences on consumption add to supply uncertainties. This is due to varying household behaviours, and changes in the residential landscape such as migration, socioeconomic changes and varying degrees of poverty (CoCT, 2007b; CoCT, 2008). Water demand management (WDM) is an approach in securing water resources for current and future needs. Once present and future estimates have been determined, appropriate policy, investment, pricing systems and management strategies can be created to ensure sustainable water use (Veck and Bill, 2000; Arbues et al, 2010)
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