Tag Archive for: Environmental Protection Agency

A faucet leaking one drip per second can waste nearly 58 gallons per week. Fix-A-Leak-Week reminds consumers to check for leaks and repair them promptly. Photo: NithinPA/Pexels

Find and Fix Leaks During Fix-A-Leak Week 2025

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) annual “Fix A Leak Week” program focuses on the importance of repairing leaks and saving water in the workplace and other commercial buildings such as hospitals, schools, hotels, retail stores, and community centers, as well as in the home.

In 2025, Fix a Leak Week will take place March 17 – 23. It is supported by the San Diego County Water Authority and many of its 22 member agencies and by other regional WaterSense partners throughout North America.

Fix a Leak Week was created in 2009 by the EPA’s WaterSense program. It offers a reminder annually to check indoor and outdoor plumbing systems for leaks.

Southern Californians Leaders In Water Savings

Bathroom plumbing and fixtures are common sources of household leaks. Graphic: EPA

Bathroom plumbing and fixtures are common sources of household leaks. Graphic: EPA

According to a recent report to the California legislature, Southern Californians have reduced their per-person potable water use by 45% since 1990, a decline driven by the region’s commitment to embracing a conservation ethic led by its residents who have adopted a conservation ethic.

Total per capita water use in the San Diego County Water Authority’s service area has dropped from over 220 gallons per capita per day (GPCD) to less than 120 GPCD in FY 2023. During this timeframe, potable water use fell by over 30 percent, even though the region’s population grew by about 17 percent.

Since 1991, the Water Authority’s water-use efficiency programs and initiatives have cumulatively conserved more than one million acre-feet of water. These savings were achieved through various measures, including incentives on water-efficient devices, legislative efforts, and outreach programs.

Leaks and continuously running water may not always be visible, but they can add up quickly and become a significant cost in water and energy bills.

A faucet leaking one drip per second can waste nearly 58 gallons per week, while a showerhead leaking ten drips per minute wastes about 10 gallons per week. Worn-out washers or loose connections are common culprits. Turn off the water, replace old washers, and tighten any loose fittings.

Be Alert For Leaks By Following These Tips

  • Listen and look for unexpected water use indoors and outdoors, such as running water, unanticipated discharge to floor drains, or wet spots and puddling water on floors.
  • Don’t wait for a high water bill to find problems. Read water meters during off-peak hours when water use is lower. If the meter continues to show high use, there may be a leak.
  • During the colder months, check your water usage on your water bill. If a family of four exceeds 12,000 gallons per month, you may have a leak.
  • Check your water meter after two hours when no water is being used. If the meter changes, you may have a leak. Contact your water agency immediately. If you aren’t sure how to read your meter, this video will help
  • Place a few drops of food coloring in the toilet tank and wait 10 minutes without flushing. If color appears in the bowl, you have a leak.
  • If your garden hose leaks during use, replace the nylon or rubber hose washer and use pipe tape and a wrench to ensure a tight connection to the spigot.

The EPA offers a helpful checklist to ensure you identify and find any possible sources of leaks.

Rebates and Incentives Water Authority customers who implement efficient water technologies and practices can take advantage of a range of rebates and incentive programs. These include rebates on irrigation devices, turf replacement, high-efficiency clothes washers, and toilets. These programs have helped hundreds of thousands of residential, commercial, and agricultural water users improve their water efficiency.

Audits and Surveys. Programs offering residential, commercial, and agricultural customers free, on-site water-use evaluations that identify specific measures to save water are great resources.

Learn about the residential, commercial, and agricultural programs and rebates available to help residents and businesses conserve water and save money.

OPINION: A New Rule Requires Lead Pipes to be Gone Within a Decade. It Won’t be Easy

It is almost impossible to be against a rule announced by the Environmental Protection Agency this month requiring utilities to replace all lead pipes within a decade. After all, who opposes the swift removal of a deadly toxin from drinking water? But there’s a tricky road ahead, and it’s an expensive one to travel.

The 9 million or so service lines across the United States pumping poison through our homes and into our bodies cause all manner of maladies, such as high blood pressure, kidney malfunction, cognitive disability and hyperactivity. The EPA estimates that, in a country without lead pipes, 1,500 fewer people every year would die early of heart disease and about 900,000 fewer infants would suffer from low birth weight. The shift could even prevent 200,000 lost IQ points in children annually.

Peters’ Bill to Streamline Permit Renewal for Wastewater Plant Passes in Committee

The legislation would simplify the city of San Diego’s permitting process to operate the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant, which will allow the city to move forward with its water-recycling project, Pure Water.

The program will supply half of San Diego’s drinking water by 2035 and help solidify the region’s water security amidst worsening conditions on the Colorado River.

How Cyber Criminals Target U.S. Water Plants

The Environmental Protection Agency is urging water systems to take immediate actions to protect the nation’s drinking water from cyberattacks. CBS News homeland security and justice reporter Nicole Sganga joins to discuss.

EPA Says It Will Step Up Cyber Regulation of Water Systems Amid Increase in Cyberattacks

The US Environmental Protection Agency is stepping up inspections of water facilities that may be vulnerable to cyberattacks, the agency said Monday, citing an increase “in frequency and severity” of cyberattacks on the nation’s water plants.

Opinion: 10 Years Later, Flint’s and America’s Water Remains Unnecessarily Hazardous

Long before my role as president of the American Public Health Association, I was a normal woman from Flint, Mich.

Flint is home. It is where I committed myself to public health over the last 40 years, started a family, developed rich friendships and found my voice. It is where I learned to speak the truth clearly and directly, and it is why I believe that our nation’s inability to fix lead in our water systems is slowly killing us all.

For the First Time, U.S. May Force Polluters to Clean Up These ‘Forever Chemicals’

The Biden administration on Friday moved to force polluters to clean up two of the most pervasive forms of “forever chemicals,” designating them as hazardous substances under the nation’s Superfund law.

As Water Rates Climb, Many are Struggling to Pay For an Essential Service

In California and across the country, household water rates have been rising as utilities invest to upgrade aging infrastructure, secure future supplies and meet treatment standards for clean drinking water. As monthly water bills continue to increase, growing numbers of customers have been struggling to pay.

Biden Administration Sets First-Ever Limits On ‘Forever Chemicals’ In Drinking Water

The Biden administration on Wednesday finalized strict limits on certain so-called “forever chemicals” in drinking water that will require utilities to reduce them to the lowest level they can be reliably measured. Officials say this will reduce exposure for 100 million people and help prevent thousands of illnesses, including cancers.

Biden Rule Targets Toxic Chemicals In US Drinking Water

The Biden administration on Wednesday announced the first-ever national limits on toxic “forever chemicals” in drinking water, a move that will require utilities serving roughly one in three Americans to remove the contaminants from their taps.