PETALING JAYA: Malaysians are huge consumers of water. The average person in this country uses 219 litres of water per day. For comparison, the average Singaporean uses just 141 litres, and in Indonesia, it is marginally higher, at 144 litres.

The high consumption, coupled with a rising population, has put more pressure on the country’s water resources.

Back in 1981, the country produced 2,126 MLD (million litres per day) of treated water each day. By 2017, it had risen eight-fold to 16,884 MLD. In that same period, the population had barely doubled.

Records show that almost 60% of the treated water produced each day is used up.