Copenhagen: Water saving strategies

Abstract:

Since 1989 Copenhagen Water has succeeded in its efforts to reduce water consumption. In consequence, water consumption in Copenhagen has fallen by 22%. In 1997 the resulting savings in water consumption amounted to a total of nearly 16 million m³. In the meantime water saving measures have become an integral part of the daily routine in new areas of water supply. The achievements have been mainly due to the following reasons:

• Customer-targeted information campaigns;
• Customer-targeted consultancy;
• Systematic monitoring and renovation activities;
• Increase in water prices;
• Special water tax.

Concept and aims

Since 1859 Copenhagen Water has administrated the supply of water to the City of Copenhagen. Meanwhile Copenhagen Water has become a regional supplier which delivers water to approximately 1 million people in the Greater Copenhagen area. In 1997 the company supplied a total quantity of 66.5 million m³, of which approximately 46% had been delivered to suburban municipalities. Because of the geographical location of Copenhagen, and due to the urban developments in the areas surrounding Copenhagen, the seven water works are placed at a distance of 15-50 km from the centre of Copenhagen. The total lengths of the transmission and distribution network are approximately 1450 km. In the Greater Copenhagen area 98% of the water supply is based on ground water.

However, the reliance on ground water means that the municipal water company has to face an increased number of environmental problems as the statutory water control order demands greater control and supervision of water supply plants. In consequence, Copenhagen Water had to face serious challenges. Still more wells have to be closed down because of ground water pollution. Due to pollution Copenhagen Water closed wells with a total capacity of 10 million m³ per year in 1997. Another 25 million m³ of clean ground water is threatened by pollution.

Due to the wide range of chemical substances in untreated water, and in regard to the protection of wetlands on Zealand, Copenhagen Water has tried to influence the consumption patterns of all customer groups. Since 1989 Copenhagen Water has initiated information and consultancy projects in order to reduce water consumption. The strategy is mainly target-group oriented:

• Information on consumption habits and the value of drinking water to the public.
• Special information initiatives for school children and children in kindergartens, including a water workshop on a permanent basis.
• Meetings with property owners, co-operative housing societies, and tenants.
• Meetings with firms, industry and trade.
• Systematised leak detection in the public distribution system.

Implementation

Since 1989 the total supply for the Greater Copenhagen area had been reduced from 82 million m³ per year to 66.5 million m³ in 1997, a total reduction of 15.5 million m³ per year. In the same period the water consumption in the City of Copenhagen has been reduced by 10 million m³ per year and the population has increased by approximately 20,000. Up to now the Copenhagen water saving initiatives have implemented the following projects:

• The first information campaign for domestic customers was launched in 1989. The purpose of the campaign was mainly intended as awareness on water consumption and the possibilities of reduction. The campaign had been carried out via advertising on buses, taxies and trains and by using local television, radio and the distribution of pamphlets and posters.
• In 1995 the campaign included an interactive element as a competition with questions about water supply and consumption reduction. This proved to be a successful action as the water supply company received more than 35,000 answers.
• In 1994 the water saving consultancy section was set up as part of the division of distribution. This section deals solely with water saving measures. Their tasks include advice to companies and housing associations; participation in committee work, exhibitions, and conferences; the publishing of written information on specific subjects concerning the reduction of water consumption. In addition, the staff gives advice via telephone consultancy.
• Water saving information is also given to people in water and sanitation businesses. The staff directly approaches plumbers, consulting engineers and other clients to employ water saving measures at their construction works.
• Besides providing advice, the section is also involved in several projects concerning installation of individual water meters in flats. Investigations concerning the possibility of using sub- standard, non-drinking water in industry are carried out in order to identify the companies with the highest savings potentials.
• The urban pipeline section within the division of distribution is mainly involved in renovation work on the public pipeline network. They carry out systematic leak tests all year round. Furthermore, they test new technology on trenchless renovation.
• High consumption areas have been found through the use of computer searching and target with intensive campaigns.

Results and Impacts

So far the water saving strategies of Copenhagen Water have been very successful. In the City of Copenhagen the total water consumption amounted to 36 million cubic metres in 1997 compared to nearly 46 million cubic metres in 1989. The consumption is shared out among domestic customers with 23.6 million m³, industrial customers with 7.8 million m³, institutional customers with 2.2 million m³, recreational use with 0.5 million m³ and the remaining 1.6 million m³ are unaccounted-for water. Domestic consumers are the main users with approximately two-thirds of the total water supply in Copenhagen.

Up to now the Copenhagen Water Supply Company achieved its goals of water use reduction in different areas as it demonstrated by the following overview of daily water consumption per inhabitant (in litres):

The change in unaccounted water is to a great extent due to the work of the urban pipeline section. By 1997 the unaccounted-for water amounts at 4.4% of total delivery was lower than in any other major city in Europe.

Actors and Structures

Copenhagen Water is owned by the municipality of Copenhagen. Its offices are located in the centre of Copenhagen, in the old buildings of the first waterworks. In early 1998 the former ”Copenhagen Water Supply” merged with the municipal sewage department, and became ”Copenhagen Water”. The organisation is structured with a Managing Director and five divisions respectively for environmental control and planning, production, distribution, sewage and economy and personnel.

Finance

All water in Copenhagen is supplied and charged by metres. For all customers the water price in 1998 was DKK 6.75 per cubic metre. Waste water treatment rates amount to DKK 9.00 per cubic metre. A state tax on piped water is DKK 5.00 and DKK 1.00 on wastewater per cubic metre with 25 % VAT. The total water price in 1997 ends at DKK 27.19 per cubic metre.

In retrospect, the total water price has been increased by more than 200% since 1989. The development of the sewage treatment system and the addition of state taxes are the main reasons for this increase.

Source of Information

Copenhagen Water 1998: Annual Report 1997, Copenhagen

Hansen, Anne 1996: Urban water use and water saving measures in Copenhagen, paper presented to the EA.UE conference on Water Saving Strategies in Urban Renewal, Vienna 1st-3th February 1996

Personal communication with Sven Sidenius, April 2000

Contact:

Cities:

Copenhagen :

The City of Copenhagen covers an area of 88.2 square kilometres. It is a densely populated city with 5,316 residents per square kilometre. The Copenhagen Municipality is the seat of the Government and Parliament, as well as of a number of supervisory institutions. It is the centre of finance and commerce.

After the dissolution of the Greater Copenhagen Council in 1990 the municipality of Copenhagen has assumed responsibility for certain regional tasks for the central parts of Greater Copenhagen and the neighbouring areas of the region of north-eastern Zealand. The City has a considerable proportion of older and small-sized houses which were built before 1945. Housing areas consist mainly of residential blocks, while single-family houses only have a share of 7% of the buildings. The population of Copenhagen consists of a relatively high proportion of elderly and young people. The number of households is 265,850.

Population:

Project was added at 27.06.1996
Project was changed at 21.08.2001

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