WATER BALANCE

Standard Water Balance

The major challenge facing water utilities and municipalities

is how to deal with high levels of Non-Revenue Water (NRW).

NRW is the gap between the amount of water put into the

distribution system and the amount of water for which

customers are actually billed.

High levels of NRW reflect huge volumes of water being

lost through leaks (real/physical losses), water not being

invoiced or not being accurately measured (apparent/

commercial losses) or both.

A water balance audit details how much of each type of loss

is occurring and how much it is costing the water utility. The

key concept behind this approach is that water should not

be “unaccounted-for”.

In conducting a water balance audit, a quantity is determined

for the major components of water consumption and water

loss, and a price is placed on each component in order to

assess its financial impact on the water utility. A detailed and

accurate water balance forms the basis for an effective NRW

management strategy.