Brisbane saves most water in the world

BRISBANE, Australia, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- Brisbane, Australia, has been named the best water-saving community in the world.

A recent drought and tough water restrictions prompted city residents to cut their water use to the point where Brisbane has overtaken cities in Germany to claim the No. 1 spot, The (Brisbane) Courier-Mail reported Monday.

The latest Queensland Water Commission figures show residents are averaging about 30 gallons of water a day per person, about four gallons below their target goal.

"The challenge for us all now is to keep at those levels," said Mayor Campbell Newman. "We use less when it rains, but now our gardens, and most importantly, our trees have had a good watering and we should be able to keep water consumption to this level."