To celebrate World Water Day the Malta Business Bureau and MSV Life today teamed up to identify water saving opportunities, through a Water Audit of the MSV premises carried out by the EU LIFE+ Investing in Water Project.

"MSV Life is committed to supporting and helping communities sustain a good quality of life, therefore we are very pleased to associate ourselves with this (water savings) project." stated David G. Curmi, MSV Life CEO.

"We have already taken steps to keep our water consumption as low as possible, however thanks to expert advice from the EU LIFE+ Investing in Water Project we have identified further easily achievable savings."

The water audit highlighted areas of best practice – one of the MSV Life premises is already self-sufficient through rainwater harvesting.

The audit also revealed that further savings could be achieved by reducing flushing volumes in office toilets and regularly checking the water meter to identify spikes in consumption caused by leaks.

The EU LIFE+ Investing in Water Project estimates that water used to flush toilets could represent as much as 80% of an offices water consumption, making it possible to achieve significant and easy savings by interventions in this area.

Groundwater stored in aquifers is Malta's major source of naturally occurring freshwater. It is, however, in a poor state, with excessive nitrates present in 90% of groundwater bodies. MEPA has estimating that 48% more groundwater is extracted every year more than is naturally replenished.

Highlighting this morning's Water Audit of the MSV Life premises, Geoffrey Saliba, the Malta's Business Bureau's EU LIFE+ Investing in Water Project Manager said "Through the project's Water Audits we aim to guide businesses and hotels in better managing their water consumption. This will help stop the deterioration of our natural freshwater reserves while also reducing expenses for caring enterprises – a win, win situation for all. "