Last Year's Seoul Tap Water Production Volume Equivalent to 5 Paldang Dams... 1.15 Billion Tons

Seoul City Analyzes and Publishes Unique Tap Water Statistics Easily Felt in Daily Life
Highest Bills at Seoul National University and Lotte World... Water Leaked from Toilets Over 4 Years Exceeds Seokchon Lake Volume
Tap Water Price per 1 Ton 565.67 Won... Enough to Make 2,000 Ramen or 2,817 Americanos

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Seoul tap water is supplied at an affordable price of about 566 won per ton, so when converted to the fee for the average daily consumption of tap water per Seoul citizen (292 liters), it amounts to only about 165 won. Last year, the public facility that paid the highest water bill was Seoul National University, and among commercial facilities, Lotte World and the Korea International Trade Association topped the list.

The Seoul Metropolitan Waterworks Headquarters analyzed and announced on the 22nd various unique statistics related to tap water that can be easily felt in daily life for the first time.

According to this data, the total production of tap water in Seoul last year was 1,157.01 million tons. This is 4.74 times the storage capacity of Paldang Dam (244 million tons).

The average daily production of tap water was 3.17 million tons, the maximum production was 4.8 million tons, and the population served was 10.02 million. Compared to 101 years ago when tap water was first produced in Korea, the maximum daily production capacity increased by 384 times, and the population served increased by 80 times.

The day with the highest production of Arisu (Seoul tap water) last year was July 5, when the first heatwave warning was issued in Seoul, producing 3.46 million tons in one day. On the other hand, the lowest production day was February 5, the Lunar New Year holiday itself, producing 2.71 million tons, which is 700,000 tons less than the maximum daily production. It is analyzed that the usage significantly decreased as the population temporarily declined due to an increase in people leaving Seoul to visit their hometowns.

The place that paid the highest water bill in Seoul was Seoul National University in Gwanak-gu. It used 354,801 tons in just August and September last year, and the two-month water bill (808.1 won per ton for public use) totaled 760 million won. Among commercial facilities, Lotte World in Songpa-gu used 100,000 tons over two months (August-September), resulting in a total water bill of 370 million won (987.7 won per ton for business use), and the Korea International Trade Association (COEX) in Gangnam-gu used 93,000 tons in August alone, paying 320 million won.

Among general households, the highest water bill was paid by Apartment A located in Songpa-gu, where about 8,800 households live. In August alone, it used 140,000 tons, resulting in a water bill (402.9 won per ton for household use) of about 130 million won. This means each household paid about 15,000 won.

Seoul tap water is supplied at an average price of 565.67 won per 1㎥ (1 ton, 1000 liters). One ton of water can boil about 2,000 packs of ramen (each 500 ml) and make 2,817 regular-sized Americanos (each 355 ml). When the price of one Americano is converted to 4,000 won, making 2,817 Americanos with one ton of tap water would generate sales of 11,268,000 won.

The average daily consumption of tap water per Seoul citizen is 292 liters, which corresponds to about 165 won when converted to the water bill. The price of 1㎥ of tap water is 3,342 won in New York, 2,319 won in London, and 1,957 won in Paris, which is 3 to 6 times higher than in Seoul.

Meanwhile, it was investigated that from 2016 to 2019, about 7.04 million tons of water were lost due to leaks from toilets in Seoul. This is a vast amount that could fill Seokchon Lake (6.36 million tons) and still have some left. Since January 1 of this year, Seoul has decided not to apply water bill discounts for leaks caused by toilets. The city explained that since toilet leaks can be visually confirmed, this policy aims to strengthen user responsibility.

In addition, by the end of last year, Seoul replaced and maintained 13,440.5 km of water pipes out of the total 13,504 km of water supply pipes in the city with pipes that are resistant to rust. This length is equivalent to 17 round trips between Seoul Station and Busan Station (397 km), 13.5 times the length of the Korean Peninsula (1,000 km), and one-third of the Earth's circumference (40,074 km).

Baek Ho, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Waterworks Headquarters, said, "I hope this statistical data on tap water in daily life will serve as an opportunity to remind citizens that tap water is an essential and important resource for their lives," adding, "To provide citizens with clean tap water stably, about 2,000 employees of the Waterworks Headquarters are working tirelessly 24/7 behind the scenes."

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