A project partnership will be helping businesses cut their water utility bills by seeking solutions that reduce consumption.
The €330,000 project will analyse the service water consumption of large businesses over a period of two years and identify ways to help them conserve the resource and reduce the expense.
The businesses taken on board for the project include hotels and companies employing a minimum of 24 people. The solutions will, however, be applicable to restaurants and households too and will be posted online.
Water treatment engineer Marco Cremona said common water-waste trends included oversized toilet flushing cisterns and high-flow showers or taps. Simple changes, such as a dual flushing system and water-saving bags for toilet cisterns and flow restrictors for shower heads and water taps, could do the trick.
Apart from the audits, the project administrators will hold one-to-one consultations to identify tailor-made solutions.
Larger scale solutions, including grey-water recycling, sewage water treatment and rainwater harvesting, could also be proposed where appropriate.
Project manager Geoffrey Saliba said that about 250 audits had already been booked and these would take place in February and March. Solutions would be implemented this year and the next.
The services will be provided free of charge by the Malta Business Bureau, supported by The Malta Chambers of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association.
This EU-funded project is also co-financed by the government and other sponsors, including The Island Hotels Group. The group has over the years invested in sustainable water technology and has managed to reduce water consumption off the local grid by more than 90 per cent.
Water shortage
Malta is one of the top 10 countries worldwide suffering from water scarcity. Groundwater is our only source of fresh water. However, it is unsustainably exploited. Nearly 50 per cent more groundwater is extracted than what is recharged on an annual basis.
The sustainable yield of the aquifers of Malta is 23 million cubic metres. Pumping water beyond this threshold results in a general deterioration in water quality.
Every year, we extract at least 36 million cubic metres of water.