A study on water saving systems and policies for tap water conservation in the era of climate crisis: focusing on the case of South Korea

Water-efficient fixtures provide water, carbon, and cost benefits, but certification, monitoring, incentives, and education gaps limit effectiveness. Climate-driven droughts and water scarcity have heightened global attention to tap water conservation policies. This study evaluates South Korea's water conservation management system. It proposes policy improvements through: (1)analysis of domestic legislation and ordinances, (2)international comparison of water conservation policies with the United States, Australia, Singapore, and Japan, and (3)integrated quantitative analysis of the water-saving, economic, and greenhouse-gas reduction effects of water-efficient fixtures. Certified fixtures reduced household water consumption by 24.6–47.1 LPCD and delivered annual per-capita greenhouse-gas emission reductions of 6.02–11.53 kg CO2-eq. The societal payback period, 5.57–10.66 years for a 3-person household, was substantially shorter than the individual payback period of 13.04–24.94 years, indicating insufficient household-level incentives for voluntary adoption. Compared with the four comparator countries, where post-installation monitoring, coordinated incentives, and water-conservation education are more systematically embedded in institutional frameworks, South Korea showed four structural weaknesses: a discrepancy between certification and field supply-pressure conditions, the absence of systematic post-installation monitoring, the limited coverage of financial incentives, and the underdevelopment of water-conservation-specific education. This study proposes revising certification standards, establishing post-installation monitoring, coordinating financial incentives nationally, and developing water-conservation education guidelines. The findings provide practical evidence for effective and sustainable tap water conservation policies in the era of climate change.