Different sectors of society use water for different purposes: drinking, removing, or diluting

wastes, producing manufactured goods, growing food, producing and using energy, and so
on. The water required for each of these activities varies with climatic conditions, lifestyle,
culture, tradition, diet, technology, and wealth. The type of access to water alone is an
important determinant in total water use. Tables 1 and 2 show that the level of domestic water
use varies with distance from the water source and with the climate. The term "water use"
encompasses many different ideas.

To meet long-term health benefits of environmental engineering it is important to enhance the

demand for better water use, sanitation and hygiene. The new systems have to be and remain
better than the alternatives in terms of economic and social costs and benefits. Program teams
have to seek the values of local experiences and viewpoints to understand what local people
really want and can use and sustain

System water demand is the quantity of water that the treatment plant must produce in order
to meet all water needs in the community. Water demand includes water delivered to the
system to meet the needs of consumers, water supply for fire-fighting and system flushing,
and water required to properly operate the treatment facilities. Additionally, virtually all
systems have a certain amount of leakage that cannot be economically removed and thus
total demand typically includes some leakage. The difference between the amount of water
sold and the amount delivered to the system is referred to as unaccounted water.
Unaccounted water can result from system flushing, leakage, firefighting, meter
inaccuracies, and other non-metered usage. Water demand varies seasonally with the
lowest usage in winter months and the highest usage during summer months. Variations in
demand also occur with respect to time of day. Diurnal peaks typically occur during the
morning and early evening periods, while the lowest usage occurs during night time hours.