Did you know that irritating leaky tap can waste more than 25 litres of water each day? Instead of quickly replacing a worn-out washer that costs just a few cents a third of Canadians take up to a week to stop the drip!
Water use has grown at twice the rate of population increases during the past 100 years. While there is enough fresh water on Earth for everyone it is rapidly becoming too polluted, wasted and not managed for sustainably. These factors have already made an impact. Almost a fifth of the world's population live where water scarcity is an issue.
Canadians over the age of 55 are most likely to fix a leaky faucet within a day than those under 34. The sixth annual 2013 RBC Canadian Water Attitudes Study, commissioned by the
RBC Blue Water Project and administered by GlobeScan found that younger Canadian adults (18-35) may feel guilty about wasting water but it doesn't change their behaviors.
Younger Canadians are more likely to water their lawn during the summer, take long showers and not pay attention to news about fresh water issues.
"With just days to go until World Water Day on March 22, we'd like Canadians to think about the value of clean, fresh water," says
Bob Sandford, chair of Canadian Partnership Initiative of the UN Water for Life Decade in a press release. "To continue enjoying the quality of drinking water we all want and need, Canadians must understand that it's a finite resource."
Fresh drinking water is a global issue but for many in Canada it hasn't hit home yet. The RBC Blue Water Project is working to change that by fostering a culture of water stewardship. RBC has pledged over $36 million to projects worldwide that protect watersheds and promote access to clean drinking water.
