Atlanta and Water – War of the Words
Tommy Linstroth explains why Georgia and the Atlanta metro face such intense water challenges.
Metropolitan Atlanta’s four million residents have just emerged from a severe drought and long-term water issues remain a critical situation for the region that has experienced rapid growth over the last 20 years. Convincing more residents to retrofit their bathrooms for water efficiency would save money for Georgia families in two ways: reducing their household water bills, and mitigating the need for taxpayer-funded reservoirs and treatment facilities.
The Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) estimates that if just 25 percent of Georgia households replaced their existing toilets and bathroom faucets with WaterSense-certified fixtures, it could save the state nearly 10 billion gallons of water per year.
According to an August article in the region’s Creative Loafing newspaper, Georgia officials estimate that conservation measures are 27 times cheaper than building new reservoirs.
Learn more: “Tighten the spigot,” Creative Loafing, August 18, 2009
Tags: water conservation, water in georgia