The benefits of saving water

Water plays a big part in our everyday lives. We use it every day for cooking, cleaning, drinking, taking a shower, or flushing the loo. But did you know that, on average, everyone in Scotland uses around 165 litres of water a day? Or that one fifth of the energy we use at home is dedicated to heating water?

We have recently seen increases to our energy bills and you might be worried about these rising costs. But, by reducing the amount of water we use every day, we can help keep energy bills down, reduce our carbon emissions and protect our natural environment too. 

That’s why Scottish Water and Home Energy Scotland are working in partnership to help householders reduce their energy bills by saving water.

How have we helped?

Since 2017, we have helped more than 60,000 householders throughout Scotland. We’ve provided free tailored water and energy saving advice, as well as free water saving packs, through Home Energy Scotland’s dedicated advice service and face-to-face events, which we held via webinars during lockdown

We recently evaluated the impact of the project. Results showed that:  

• 86% of the people we supported had made some changes following the advice we gave them. They either adopted new water-saving behaviours or installed a new water saving device.
• 83% of those we helped felt they saved water and/or energy as a result of taking on board advice they had received from Home Energy Scotland and changing their behaviour.

In one of the case studies we produced as part of the evaluation, a householder reported that they had seen a decrease in their electricity costs after implementing all the water saving advice they received from our advisors.

What makes us most proud is that 88% of the respondents were either very satisfied or satisfied with the water saving advice they received. In total, we estimate the project has helped customers to achieve lifetime savings of £674,900 and 2,790 tonnes of CO2 through reducing the amount of hot water they use. 

It’s not just about individuals 

We’ve also helped communities through localised water efficiency campaigns, and organising various activities such as challenges, events, webinars and tailored communications.

Our evaluation showed that the majority of those we had helped felt that being part of community focused campaign had encouraged them to take action and become more water efficient, which they might not normally do.

Want to find out more?

Saving water has numerous benefits for individuals and communities.   

If you are a householder and want to receive tailored water and energy efficiency advice to help you to reduce energy bills, or simply protect Scotland’s beautiful environment, contact one of Home Energy Scotland’s advisors on 0808 808 2282. It’s completely free. 

If you’re an employer or part of a community group and would like to organise a water efficiency event or webinar to help your employees/community reduce their energy bills and carbon footprint, please contact HES_Partnerships@est.org.uk.