City attempts to recycle water

WILMINGTON — With Wilmington under a stage-one water conservation alert, the city is doing its part by recycling water.

Pumps are draining the city’s public pools and using the water for irrigation. The pool water is being routed to nearby sprinklers to water the grass in the parks surrounding the pools.

City officials say this saves water and keeps more than 600,000 gallons from entering the already over-burdened sewer system.

Wilmington city spokesperson Malissa Talbert said, “Another great thing about this is that the average homeowner who has a pool can do the very same thing. You can buy a very inexpensive manifold at any hardware store, hook it up to your hose, and water your lawn. That’s water you’ve paid for, and you’re going to pay for if it goes down the drain, so why not use it on your lawn.”

Officials say outdoor water use and irrigation accounts for about 70 percent of average household water use. The remaining 30 percent is utilized through indoor plumbing.