Homes in the South and West Typically Use the Most Water

A new study reveals residential areas are responsible for less than 8 percent of water usage in the U.S.

Using data from the decennial Census, the National Association of Home Builders' study concludes that the average home in the U.S. uses about 260 gallons of water per day (gpd), varying from a low of 100 gpd in Maine to a high of 472 in Nevada. There is relatively higher use per home in the central South and West, especially in mountain and desert states.

The basic results showed that, at the state level, water use per housing unit is positively correlated with average temperature and average household size, negatively correlated with annual rainfall. In short, homes tend to use more water if they are in states that are hot, dry and have larger households.

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