Amsterdam residents use more water than average Dutch households

Amsterdam residents use significantly more water than the average Dutch person, according to a study by Statistics Netherlands (CBS) on behalf of water company Waternet. In the Waternet area, residents use an average of 141 liters per person per day, compared to 129 liters nationally, Parool reports.

Waternet provides water to Amsterdam and surrounding municipalities like Amstelveen, Diemen, and Ouder-Amstel. According to the water company, the high usage is partly due to the region's large number of single-person households. The fewer people living in one house, the higher the water consumption per person.

But even compared to other cities, the Amsterdam region uses a lot of water. Nationally, the average water consumption per person in urban areas is 133 liters daily.

According to CBS, the difference is mainly due to Amsterdam residents’ shower behavior. In the Amsterdam region, 60.1 liters of water per person go down the shower drain every day, compared to 46.2 liters for the national average. Amsterdam residents shower more than average, with 0.99 showers per person per day compared to 0.82 nationally, and for longer than average at 7.7 minutes against 7.4. Amsterdammers are also less likely to have a water-saving shower head, 30 percent, compared to 39 percent nationally.

Waternet urged Amsterdammers to be conservative with their water use - water is not an infinite resource. It suggested taking shorter showers, using the small flush button on the toilet, and installing a water-saving shower head.