Tips to improve water efficiency in small businesses

The current drought is the worst that South Africa has experienced in decades, and it has already had a severe impact on jobs in agriculture and food manufacturing.
Earlier this year, Stats SA reported that the drought last summer saw jobs in agriculture decline by 37 000.
At the same time, food prices are rising because of poor rainfall.
Business owners can play an important part in conserving water resources while reducing their utility bills by embracing water efficiency as a way of life.
In doing so, they can play a valuable role in assisting the country to manage the effects of a prolonged drought.
That’s according to Anton van Heerden, Executive Vice-President Africa and Middle East at Sage, who says the challenge is for small businesses that depend heavily on water to produce goods or deliver services – for example; gyms, laundromats, agribusinesses, restaurants, hair dressers, car washes, the hospitality sector and many factories.
Van Heerden offers some tips for small and medium businesses about how they can improve their water efficiency:  
• Be creative. Many South African entrepreneurs who are the business builders of the country are finding creative ways to work around the water crisis for example, we are starting to see waterless car wash franchises emerge.
This reduces the amount of water wasted from using unnecessary hose pipes and installed washers.
• When it’s time to replace fittings and equipment, buy pressurised coffee machines, water-wise baseline dishwashers, efficient tap fittings and so on. They are sometimes more expensive, but will pay for themselves over time.
Clean without wasting water. Many South African businesses waste water when washing floors, cars and walls. Rather use a bucket and a cloth, mop or a broom to clean.
• Detect leaks and plug them. Keep an eye on your water bill. If it’s unexpectedly large, you might have a leaking pipe or dripping tap. If you notice a pipe or tap is leaking, fix it immediately.
• Make sure your bathrooms are water-wise. Consider using water-efficient bathroom fittings – for example, taps with an aerator or flow restrictor to use less water as well as water-efficient urinals.
• Tending to the grounds and garden. Go for drought-tolerant, indigenous plants rather than thirstier alien plants. If you have an irrigation system, make sure it is properly maintained and configured.
Switch it off completely if there’s rain. Install a rainwater tank and use that for watering your plants.
• Educate employees. To ensure that your efforts to conserve water are successful, you may need to change behaviour among your employees.
Educate them about how they can avoid waste – for example, by not leaving taps running when they wash their hands or their lunch dishes.
You could, for example, put water saving tips up near kitchen and bathroom taps to remind team members of the importance of saving water.