Volt VIEWtech has made several hundred thousand of these inspections, saving an estimated 11 million gallons of water a day in eliminated leaks and increased efficiency. In efforts to save even more water, New York City has gone outside the home and into the streets. Water officials have installed magnetic locking caps on fire hydrants to keep people from turning them on in the summer. Although the city's population continues to grow, per person water use in New York dropped from 195 to 169 gallons a day between 1991 and 1999. From all indications, this trend is following its upward path.
Water conservation works.
And New Yorkers are proving that every flush makes a difference. Namibia is the driest African country south of the Sahara Desert. Blistering heat evaporates water faster than rains can rejuvenate the parched landscape, and there are no year-round rivers. Residents of the capital city, Windhoek, must do more than just conserve water to secure a permanent supply. They must reuse the precious little they have.