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Last year, each person in Singapore used 156 litres of water a day - 16 litres, or about two buckets, less a day than in 1995.
It has taken these 13 years for the figure to fall by nearly 10 per cent.
A few moves to kick in from July ought to cut it further.
From that month, taps and toilet flushing equipment sold here must bear labels stating how water efficient they are.
Also from July: Water appliances installed in new and renovated homes will have to have at least a 'one-tick' water- efficiency rating. Similar rules for energy efficiency already apply to electrical appliances sold here.
Where water consumption is concerned, the target is to have each person use no more than 147 litres a day by 2020, and 140 litres a day by 2030.
The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources said yesterday it would keep its eye on the ball for water conservation through public education.
In its addendum to the President's parliamentary address on Monday, the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim also committed his ministry to ensuring that Singapore uses its energy, water and other resources efficiently.
The addendum released yesterday also said the ministry would continue working to create a high-quality living environment here by, among other things:
The ministry said that next month, it will release more details of its plans to invest money in technologies to reduce pollution levels.
As it stands now, the air quality in Singapore as measured by the Pollutant Standards Index is in the 'good' range for 350 days of the year.
Details will also be released on the efforts to cut waste, which amounted to 5.97 million tonnes last year.
With Singapore gearing up to be home to 6.5 million people, it will have to face up to more pollution and even bigger mounds of waste.
Already, waste disposal rates have grown sixfold in 30 years.
Dr Yaacob said initiatives to cut pollution and waste will bring down costs, improve energy security and enhance Singapore's economic competitiveness.
The Republic can thus be positioned as 'a global hub for environment and water solutions, providing economic opportunities and jobs for Singaporeans and helping humanity beyond Singapore', he said.
The clean technology sector is expected to create 18,000 more jobs and add $3.4 billion to the country's gross domestic product over the next six years.
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