TWELVE HOURS. No taps.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
A NSW resident turns the tap on for about an hour and 44 minutes a day, that's 52 minutes more than the average Australian.
The challenge for locals this Water Night is to guzzle less and save more by switching off the taps for 12 hours on Thursday.
Most people don't realise just how much water goes down the gurgler each day, Tamworth Regional Council (TRC) water sustainability officer Louise Cadell said.
"We think we use the tap nine times in a day when really it's around 16 times a day," she said.
"National Water Week kicks off today [Monday] until October 24 and the theme this year is 'Caring for Water and Country'.
"As the theme suggests it's all about listening to our First Nations people and learning from them as they have sustained water and country for over 65,000 years, there's definitely a lesson in that."
Gomeroi people have leant their Indigenous knowledge to Water Week in Tamworth, with a series of videos across the coming days hoped to help residents gain an insight into sustainability and cultural water management practices.
Read also:
Ms Cadell said it's been an interesting few years in water management, with a relentless drought, torrential floods and a now spilling Chaffey Dam in the region.
"It's about stopping, reflecting and thinking about how many times we do reach for the tap," she said.
"It's about improving our water mindfulness not just during drought and not just indoors but outdoors as well.
"No matter if we are in a drought or not it's important to improve our water mindfulness to be more efficient."
Despite a recovery from drought, residents have remained conscious of their water usage even as the hotter weather starts to sweep across the region.
Ms Cadell said she had expected water consumption to increase dramatically but to date it has been stable.
"Residents have continued to prove that they have sustained water efficiency post the low-dam levels," she said.
Anyone can sign up to be a part of Water Night which runs from 12pm to 12am on October 21.
Ms Cadell said there are fantastic prizes on offer for households that successfully complete the challenge and demonstrate water mindfulness.
For more information, hacks and activities like Tap Guardians and Brake Bracelets, visit the TRC website.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark northerndailyleader.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News