Conservation can help keep water costs down

Dec. 1, 2015 – A long-range program to improve the City of Chicago’s water system means that communities such as Oak Park that rely on Lake Michigan water likely will face annual rate increase for years to come.

While some may say consumers have no choice but to pay more, there is another option — use less.

Individuals and families who adopt common sense water conservation strategies can not only ease the impact of rate increases, but even help reduce the community’s impact on the shared environment.

Systems that capture gray water from bathtubs and laundries for non-potable uses such as landscaping can dramatically reduce consumption, but can be expensive. Luckily, low- and no-cost options also can have a big impact on a household’s water use and, ultimately, on its water bill.

In fact, small lifestyle changes often can have the biggest collective impact on water use, experts say.

Fixing a running toilet and using flow constrictors on showerheads and faucets, for example, can save significant amounts of water and help reduce one’s bill.

Taking shorter showers can save lots of water, too. Simply turning off the water while you brush your teeth can reduce water use up to four gallons a minute — that’s as much as 200 gallons a week for a family of four.

Oak Parkers use more than five million gallons of water every day, for which the Village pays Chicago about $6 million each year.

The actual cost of the water Oak Park property owners pay is in addition to local fees that are essential to maintaining the network that delivers water to customers’ taps and carries the waste to regional treatment plants.

Water charges are calculated monthly, but most property owners are billed quarterly. The bill also includes charges for sewer service based on water usage and refuse hauling fees.

Information on ways to conserve water abounds. The Village has compiled a list of some of the most practical approaches — just visit www.oak-park.us/conservewater.