Illinois American Water partners with EPA during Fix a Leak Week
Free materials and information available to help reduce the trillion-plus gallons of water lost in residential leaks every year

[March 17, 2015]  BELLEVILLE - Illinois American Water has partnered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promote the seventh annual Fix a Leak Week, which runs from March 16-22.

The national campaign, part of the EPA’s WaterSense program, is designed to raise awareness about small leaks and other water waste that may be occurring within homes. Considering there are more than 110 million households in this country, a seemingly minor leaky faucet or running toilet collectively results in a tremendous amount of wasted water -- more than a trillion gallons of water are lost annually nationwide through leaks occurring within our homes, with the average residence losing 11,000 gallons a year this way. However, through initiatives like Fix a Leak Week, local companies like Illinois American Water, are hoping to significantly reduce that amount.

“If you can picture a hole the size of the period in this sentence, it may not seem like much, but in your water system, it can waste more than 4,000 gallons a month—enough for a shower every day. Being proactive in checking for leaks, and fixing them in a timely manner not only makes you a more environmentally conscious consumer of one of the world’s most valuable resources, but also saves money on your water bill,” said Bruce Hauk, Illinois American Water President.

To assist customers with at-home leak repairs and prevention, Illinois American Water has produced a helpful  infographic as a quick guide for finding and fixing common, and some not-so-common, indoor and outdoor water leaks. A downloadable leak detection kit is available in the Learning Center of American Water’s website ,www.amwater.com.  

About Illinois American Water
Illinois American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to approximately 1.2 million people. American Water also operates a customer service center in Alton and a quality control and research laboratory in Belleville.

Founded in 1886, American Water (NYSE: AWK) is the largest and most geographically diverse publicly traded U.S. water and wastewater utility company. With headquarters in Voorhees, N.J., the company employs approximately 6,400 dedicated professionals who provide drinking water, wastewater and other related services to an estimated 15 million people in more than 45 states and parts of Canada. More information can be found at www.amwater.com.

[Karen Cotton, Illinois American Water]