Domestic and Business Retrofit Project
The initial aim of the program was to encourage residents of Sydney to consume less domestic water. Since then, Sydney Water has expanded the initiative to incorporate businesses, helping them to reduce their water consumption and to benefit from reduced costs. They did so by promoting the use of efficient devices, inspect mains infrastructure, reach out to and work with the business sector to identify solutions, educate them on water management, and encourage them to participate.
The program, at a cost of US$240,000,000, Sydney Water since 2001 has helped save 12,410,000m3/year which would otherwise have been lost to the ocean. Water use per capita was reduced from 411 liters/day in 2001 to 297 liters/day in 2012. In terms of infrastructure maintenance, 18,080km of mains were inspected and repaired, saving more than 20,000m3/year in reduced leakage.