Student Worksheet

Thought-starter: How much water do you use when flushing the toilet?

The aim of conducting this water audit is to:

Find out how much water your school uses in an average week and what the usage patterns are;
Find out where water is being used wisely at your school;
Find out where water is being wasted and sites of improvement; and
Communicate your findings to the school community.

School water meter

Record the water meter reading first thing in the morning and last thing in the afternoon for eight days (excluding on the weekend). From the data calculate the amount of water used during school hours and after school hours.

Calculate the amount of water consumed

How much water was used during the week?

Answer these questions, and create graphs and charts in support of your answers (TIP - assume that a large percentage of water is used during school time in the toilets):

How does the water consumption differ from school time and non-school time over night and the weekends?
What times see the most and least amounts of water being used?
From the data can you see if the gardens/lawns/sport fields are being watered out of school hours?

Tap audit

Check each tap and place a tick or asterisk (*) in the boxes that apply to each tap.

Garden/lawn/sports field watering system audit

Use a copy of the master map to locate where the school’s watering systems are located The purpose of this audit is to look for evidence of too much water being used to water outdoor areas.

Toilet and urinal audit

Check each toilet and urinal and place a tick or asterisk (*) in the boxes that apply. Be careful not to invade anyone’s privacy!

Water fountain audit

Check each fountain and place a tick or asterisk (*) in the boxes that apply to each fountain.

Analysing the data

Collate the data collected by groups (you may want to create a master copy or nominate a group to manage the master copy). Work as a class to find out:

Where water is being used wisely - What water saving devices are already in place? Are most taps easy to use and working efficiently? Do toilets have dual-flush cisterns and flush efficiently? Are school watering systems operated in the evenings or early mornings to minimise evaporation?
Where water is being wasted and where the sites of improvement are - Which taps are operating inefficiently? Which fountains and toilets are leaking? Are watering systems leaking?

Using desktop publishing tools (such as Photoshop) create a new map (either using a scanned version of the master map or Google Maps) of the school showing the water access points with details about efficiency and improvement. Use this map as the basis of a communication plan around school water conservation.

AuSSI Water Use Audit (Upper Primary)

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