The City of Dollard-des-Ormeaux would like to raise awareness of the value of water and reduce the use of this precious resource.
Less than 1 % of the earth’s water supply can be used as drinking water. Using water efficiently and avoiding waste are fundamental to ensuring water availability in the future. Every little drop helps, so let’s all make an effort today!
Did you know that…
- Quebecers are among the highest consumers of drinking water in the world, consuming 268 liters per person per day. The average Ontarian uses about 184 liters each day.
- Toilets are the greatest source of water consumption inside your home?
- Drinking water consumption can double during the summer because of outside uses?
- In July, lawns are dormant. Not only should you not fertilize during this period, but you should also limit watering.
Indoor household use by fixture
*The “Other” category includes evaporative cooling, humidification, water softening, and other uncategorized indoor uses
Source: Water Research Foundation, Residential End Use of Water, Version 2, April 2016.
A few tips to reduce your water usage Inside
- Replace your standard toilet with a WaterSense certified or low-flow toilet. A household of four can save over 60,000 liters per year with this small gesture.
- Fixing a leaking toilet will prevent wasting large volumes of water. A leaking toilet uses up to 550 liters of drinking water per day, which can double your daily water consumption.
- Keep a jug of water in the refrigerator instead of letting water run until it is cool enough to drink.
- Wait until the dishwasher is full before starting a wash.
- Taking a 5-minute shower saves an average of 200 liters of drinking water per week.
- Reduce your consumption by focusing on water-saving equipment, such as:
Equipment | Savings |
|---|---|
WaterSense certified or low flow toilets | 60% |
Faucet aerators in the bathroom | 50% |
Faucet aerators in the kitchen | 25% |
WaterSense certified shower heads | 25% |
EnergyStar certified dishwashers | 35% |
Energy Star certified washing machines | 30% |
Want a new WaterSense certified showerhead?
The City offers free water and energy saving product kits.
Outside
- Water early in the morning or late at night to avoid water loss due to evaporation;
- Avoid watering the lawn unnecessarily in summer. The biggest factor in wasting drinking water is watering. By keeping the grass at a height of 8 cm, it provides shade on the ground and prevents the rapid evaporation of water. Thus, per week, only one deep watering is necessary to maintain a healthy lawn.
- Use a broom rather than a hose to clean your driveway.
- Install a rain barrel to wash your terraces, do your gardening, water your lawn and you will save up to 6,000 litres of water per year.
Other Relevant Information
Metropolitan Waste Management Plan 2015-2020
The Council of the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal adopted at its regular meeting held on June 18, 2020, “By-law number 2020-84 amending by-law number 2016-68 on the 2015-2020 metropolitan residual materials management plan”. Find all the information here (French only).
WATER METRES
Looking to be environmentally responsible, have a water metre installed!
The Quebec Strategy for Drinking Water Conservation, adopted by the Quebec government, requires all municipalities to prepare an audit on water use and to reduce the quantity of water distributed per person.
In order to comply with this government directive, the City must install residential water metres on a voluntary basis. The data collected will be used to establish statistics on water consumption in the territory and to detect and locate leaks more quickly, thus avoiding waste.
The City will provide and install the water metre free of charge.
- Managing drinking water consumption: adopting or adjusting consumption habits and avoiding waste;
- Encouraging drinking water conservation: monitor your water consumption in real-time to encourage water-saving practices that will help preserve this essential natural resource;
- Leak detection: identify and repair leaks more quickly;
- Detecting plumbing problems: observe variations in water consumption (e.g. leaky toilets, dripping indoor or outdoor taps, etc.);
- A new water shutoff valve: replace the internal valve to ensure that the water supply inside the house is hermetically sealed, reducing the risk of water damage.
Take advantage of this opportunity to embrace an environmentally friendly attitude and contribute to this project!
Contact us by email at compteursdeau@ddo.qc.ca or by phone at 514 684‑1010.