CHANGES IN WATER USE IN DIFFERENT COVID-19 PANDEMIC RESTRICTION SCENARIOS

ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted in the lifestyle of people it has changed habits, mobility and working dynamics, which has led to a rise in basic supply consumption in households. This paper aims to analyse the change in hot domestic water consumption during COVID-19 compared with pre-pandemic periods, in volume terms and the pattern change. For this purpose, an own-developed stochastic model to characterize domestic hot water use is modified to different restriction scenarios to adapt it to COVID-19 pandemic conditions. To validate the model, Urban Water consumption changes during 2020 in the cities of El Prat de Llobregat and Barberà del Vallès are analyzed in order to relate total use of water in residential homes and domestic hot water consumption. The mean increase for DHW found is around 7%. For good measure, daily water pattern consumption results increased from 10h to 13h and from 16h to 19h in this scenario, which is consistent with the literature review. Both results, volumetric and pattern, are considered valid. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee AEIPRO, Spain.