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(Fort Worth) - Are you struggling for that perfect holiday gift idea, the one for the person who has everything?
How about a new toilet, courtesy of the Fort Worth Water Department?
The toilets are available in any color as long as it’s white, they’re free to people who qualify, and they’re a gift that keeps on giving. By replacing older toilets, which use 3.5 to seven gallons per flush, the department expects to save 84 million gallons a year.
The department is giving away 7,000 toilets as part of a water conservation program.
"A typical homeowner, we estimate, would save about $76 a year on their water bill," water department spokeswoman Mary Gugliuzza said.
The new toilets are dual-flush. They use 0.8 gallon to flush liquids and 1.28 gallons for solids.
The program is open to people who are already Fort Worth water customers, live in a home built before 1994 and have a toilet that uses more than three gallons per flush.
Residents who are over age 60 or who earn 200 percent or less of the federal poverty level can have a toilet installed for free. Other residents can receive a voucher for a free toilet at one of three local plumbing supply houses.
Fort Worth, which is paying for the toilet replacements from its water fund, is among several cities looking to recycling to meet their water needs.
Water costs 33 cents per 1,000 gallons but will cost $1.60 per 1,000 gallons if a new reservoir is built.
[Fort Worth Star-Telegram]
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