Unaccounted-For Water Puzzle: More Than Just Leakage

ost people consider unaccounted-for water and leakage to be the same thing. They are not. Leakage is a part, and sometimes a large part, of unaccounted-for water, but it is just one piece of the puzzle. Unaccounted-for water is the difference between the amount of water produced, or purchased, and the amount of water sold to all customers. Unaccounted-for water includes underground leakage; unauthorized use; unavoidable leakage, inaccurate master, industrial, commercial and domestic meters; and unusual causes. To properly determine an unaccounted-for water percentage for a municipality, a running total of water billed versus water pumped needs to be prepared. A one-month balance is not effective because billing cycles often don’t occur simultaneously. A twelve-month running total not only balances out any problems with different billing cycles, it also allows you to track trends to see if the unaccounted-for rate is changing.