Water Consumption and Forthcoming Price Increase

Mr Png Eng Huat asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources for the past 10 years, what have been the average number and percentage of households whose annual water consumption are below the national average, broken down by HDB flat types and private housing types respectively.

Mr Png Eng Huat asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources for the past 10 years, what has been the domestic water consumption per capita of Singapore compared to other First World countries.

In raising the water price to ensure sustainability in water supply, the Government will be providing assistance to help lower-income households manage the price increase. Details on the revisions in water prices and measures to assist households, will be announced by the Minister for Finance in the Budget Statement on 20 February 2017.

Members have asked about water consumption by households and businesses. Currently, 45% of water demand is from the domestic sector, while 55% is from the non-domestic sector, which covers industries and commercial buildings.

Today, the national average water consumption for households is 17 cubic metres of water per month, down from 19 cubic metres 10 years ago. About 40% of households consume more water than the national average today, as was the case 10 years ago. For more details on the monthly average water consumption by dwelling type, Members may refer to the SP Services website.

If we look at per capita usage, households' water consumption in Singapore is 148 litres per capita per day (LPCD). This is lower than that of Melbourne (159), London (155), New York City (476), Tokyo (220) and Hong Kong (211). But we should not be complacent. We must continue to learn from other cities, such as Copenhagen and Amsterdam, which have achieved lower LPCD levels of 101 and 136 respectively. Notwithstanding contextual differences, such as climate, we can still save more water by adopting more water-saving habits and making use of more water-efficient appliances in our households.

As for the non-domestic sector, the Public Utilities Board (PUB) has since 2015 required the submission of Water Efficiency Management Plans (WEMP) for large water users that consume 60,000 cubic metres or more a year, equivalent to 24 Olympic-sized swimming pools. These plans help companies identify ways to reduce consumption. In 2016, more than 600 large water users have submitted their plans. With the data collected from WEMP, PUB will develop water efficiency benchmarks and good practice guidelines for water-intensive sectors to help them further identify opportunities to improve water efficiency.