Seoul City Saves Water Equivalent to 50 Times Paldang Dam Over 31 Years... Record High Flow Rate of 95.8%

Saving 12.1 Billion m³ of Leaking Water Cuts Tap Water Production Costs by 8.6 Trillion Won
This Year's Goal 96.1% ... Full Effort on Aging Pipe Replacement and IT-Based Real-Time Management

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government has prevented the leakage of 12.1 billion tons of tap water over 31 years from 1989 to last year. This amount is about 50 times the water volume of Paldang Dam (244 million m³) and enough for 10 million Seoul citizens to use for approximately 10 years.

On the 13th, Seoul announced that the water supply retention rate in 2019 improved by 0.7% from 95.1% the previous year to 95.8%, setting a new domestic record in the history of water supply. This is a record comparable to the world's best retention rate (Tokyo 96.1%, 2018).

The water supply retention rate refers to the ratio of tap water produced at the water purification plant that reaches households through water pipes and is billed. An increase in this rate means that water wasted during the supply process has decreased.

The city estimated that the improvement in the retention rate saved 8.6 trillion KRW in tap water production and supply costs over the past 31 years. This calculation is based on the fact that the total production volume could be reduced due to less water loss during the supply process.

Additionally, the city cited early replacement of aging water pipes, implementation of leak prevention measures targeting responsible parties such as construction sites, and stable water supply through expansion of water reservoirs as causes for the increased retention rate.

First, the city replaced 99.8% (13,620 km) of the total 13,649 km of water pipes with corrosion-resistant pipes such as ductile cast iron pipes and stainless steel pipes. It is proactively maintaining long-used transmission, distribution, and supply pipes that have a high likelihood of water quality issues and leaks. At the same time, it is strictly managing construction sites to prevent leakage accidents caused by negligence or poor management, such as pipe bursts.

The city expanded the number of water reservoirs to 102 locations to reduce leaks caused by pressure and established a stable water supply system by maintaining uniform water pressure through a 24-hour natural flow method. In addition, it minimized wasted water through maintenance of unused pipes, proactive focused leak detection in vulnerable areas, optimal management of drainage water during reservoir cleaning, and strengthened public water management.

The city has set this year’s retention rate target at the world’s highest level of 96.1% and plans to make every effort to achieve it.

It will complete the replacement of the remaining 28.9 km of first-generation aging water pipes by the first half of this year and also maintain 38 km of long-used water pipes that are over 30 years old. Furthermore, it plans to expand the operation of a flow monitoring system that controls and monitors the flow of tap water in real time to strengthen systematic and scientific supply volume management.

Baek Ho, head of the Seoul Waterworks Headquarters, said, "Just by preventing the loss of tap water caused by aging pipes and poor management, we can save hundreds of millions annually in budget. We ask citizens to actively contact the waterworks office if they suspect leaks at home so that we can quickly take action to prevent water waste."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.